COURAGE IN THE FACE OF FLYING!

My long-time friend Jan displays extraordinary courage in emergency situations, but she’s deathly afraid of flying.  For seven intense years, she worked in the emergency room of a Twin Cities hospital.  Her title was health unit coordinator, but her roles involved much more.  She was the compassionate counselor to a hysterical mother whose child had just died.  Her own sadness and outpouring of emotion had to wait.  She was the tender, soothing soul to the terrified four-year old awaiting a doctor’s visit.  She was also the one who stood steadfastly firm to demanding parents.  Frequently they attempted to bypass necessary hospital rules and regulations.  Doctors were well aware of Jan’s medical knowledge and were eager to have her helping hand, even though she didn’t have a medical degree.  They knew she had a steady hand and could always be trusted.

Although my friend had no fear relating to others’ medical emergencies, her fear of flying forced odd detours in her own life.  Remembering numerous turbulent flights, she diligently sought other forms of travel.  (She’d come perilously close to flying and then . . . Rationalization set in.)

            “If you fly, you don’t get to see the countryside,” she’d say.  Train trips are a more peaceful way to travel.  There are so many interesting people on the train.”  And on it went.

Recently Jan rented a car for a seven-hour drive to Chicago, followed by an uncomfortable 21-hour train trip to New York.  The occasion was her daughter’s college graduation, but she nearly missed it.  The drive took longer than expected and it took a mad dash to the train platform to rescue the trip.  It didn’t bother Jan though.  She’s used to sprinting now, being a part-time pizza delivery driver.  The emergency room eventually took its toll. At 51 she’s the exception to anyone’s rule.  There’s rarely a neighborhood she won’t deliver to.

            “If you project fear, people sense it,” she says.  “So don’t put it out there.”

Many customers appreciate her exceptional service and care.  She’s the best pizza delivery driver in town; she also makes many of the products she delivers, including homemade natural soups, exquisite salads, and desserts.  People have often said that some of her creations belong in the finest restaurants. Additionally, she fills the role of the neighborhood nurturer while staying true to herself.  Her creative soup signs bear this out.  One sign several years ago displayed pictures of Iraqi people, young and old, as well as American soldiers.  The pointed message asked people to consider the impact of the war.  The featured soup was Red Lentil Curry, but the message went much deeper.

Perhaps Jan’s most courageous and selfless act was nurturing her sister during her final months of life, as she struggled with lung cancer.  Jan’s tender soft hands often soothed Sandy in moments of excruciating pain.  Her calm steady voice reassured her.  And Jan reminisced with her sister about times filled with laughter through the years.  One memorable moment involved their attendance at a behavioral psychologists’ meeting, where they were obvious displaced souls.  Their own behavior lacking, the two of them burst into uncontrollable laughter at meeting’s end and were virtually driven away by harsh penetrating eyes.

During the ten years I’ve known her, Jan has displayed courage and compassion in countless extraordinary ways.  She still doesn’t fly, but I’m convinced that one day she’ll conquer that challenge too.

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KATHARINE WRIGHT--DEVOTED SISTER OF THE WRIGHT BROTHERS

KATHARINE AT GRADUATION FROM OBERLIN COLLEGE

 

ORVILLE WRIGHT

 

WILBUR WRIGHT

 

Orville and Wilbur Wright were world-famous aviation pioneers and inventors who’ve been given credit for building the first successful airplane in the world.  In 1903 they had the first successful flight of the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.  It was considered “the first sustained and controlled heavier-than-air powered flight” by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale.  Much is known about them, but until recently, little was known about their remarkable sister Katharine.  She was a dedicated supporter of Will and Orville and immensely proud of their achievements.  Without her, their success would have been far less known and recognized.  I recently finished reading THE WRIGHT SISTER by Richard Maurer, who learned about Katharine while doing other research.  What he learned was fascinating.  By the end of the book I wanted to jump back in history and meet the woman behind the Wright brothers.

Katharine Wright was born in 1874 and grew up in Dayton, Ohio.  Her older brother Wilbur was seven years her senior, Orville three years.  She was very connected to them, as well as her parents.  In many ways Katharine was much like her mother, who died when she was only thirteen.  Susan was a gentle, kind, and compassionate woman who was dedicated to her children and capable of making “something out of nothing” with the limited salary her husband Milton earned as a bishop of the United Brethren church. 

THE WRIGHT FLYER, 1903

 

Milton Wright was quite an amazing man for his time as well.  He encouraged Katharine to attend Oberlin College in 1898, an opportunity nearly unheard of for a woman.  In comparison, her brothers Orville and Wilbur dropped out of high school to start a printing business.  Eventually they opened a bicycle shop and later turned their passions to flying. The flying experiments which they conducted in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina were done to test ways of controlling a glider in flight, which they hoped would lead to a powered machine.

In 1907 Wilbur traveled to Europe to try to arrange airplane deals.  In 1908 the Wright brothers tested their Flyer, wanting to sell it to the U.S. government.  Following numerous successes, it crashed on September 17, 1908.  The propeller had broken and the army lieutenant on board was killed and Orville seriously injured.  It was Katharine who was with him for weeks nearly non-stop at the army hospital in Virginia.  She left her teaching job, never to return.  Then in late 1908 when Orville had nearly recovered, Wilbur invited him and Katharine to sail to France. He offered to pay Katharine a salary if she would become their social manager.  She and Orville sailed in January the following year.  She later called it “a dream.”  She met famous aristocrats and royals, who were interested in Orville and Wilbur’s inventions, but were charmed by Katharine. She was a big hit with the French, and unlike her very shy brothers, Katharine was very outgoing. She was called “the third Wright brother” by European newspapers because she was so good at connecting with important people who had an interest in buying her brothers’ planes. She and her brothers were awarded the Legion of Honor, the highest decoration in France, established by Napoleon Bonaparte.  Very few women from the U.S. have received that award. 

Upon returning to Ohio, Katharine became a huge celebrity, along with Wilbur and Orville. She became very important in entertaining visitors from around the world who were interested in aviation.  She also served her brothers well as an officer in the Wright Company.  After Wilbur died unexpectedly, Katharine turned to running the household for Orville and her father. They were all devastated by Wilbur’s death from typhoid fever, but it was Katharine who held things together. In 1914 they moved to Hawthorne Hill, an elaborate mansion outside of Dayton. 
Three years later her father died.  Orville came to depend on Katharine more and more.  He never imagined that she would choose a life away from him and whatever his needs were because she had always been there for him. She loved him and had been completely devoted to him.

But within a few years she met her college friend Harry Haskell, who was an editor with the Kansas City Star.  He had always been in love with Katharine and asked her to marry him.  She was extremely reluctant to tell Orville; she was fearful of his reaction because he had always depended upon her.  It was Harry who broke the news.  Orville was distraught and refused to attend the wedding or have anything more to do with Katharine.  She was upset with the loss of her relationship with Orville and tried valiantly to heal things, but Orville refused to give in. It was only when Katharine was on her death bed two years after her marriage to Harry that Orville came to see her. She died of pneumonia a day later. 

Katharine was remembered glowingly by one of her dear friends as a gracious, sensitive, caring, and gentle woman.  She clearly understood the pain others experienced and knew how to comfort them.

She was also a strong woman who stood up for women’s rights.  She became an advocate for equal pay for women who were faculty members at Oberlin College.  She had a fierce devotion to her former college, which was the first college to regularly admit female and black students.  Many of its students also went on to receive PhD’s. 

Orville lived twenty years beyond Katharine, until 1948.  Her husband Harry Haskell became a part owner of the Kansas City Star and won the Pulitzer Prize for journalism twice.  He eventually remarried and died in 1952.

Although Katharine Wright did not live a long life, she lived a remarkable life, filled with adventure, love, and concern for others.  I’m glad I got to know her as an individual as well as The Wright Sister.

MEDICINE LAKE AND THE 45TH PARALLEL

Nearly anywhere you might venture in Minneapolis, St. Paul or the Twin Cities suburbs, you are likely to find a body of water.  Each one of those lakes or rivers has a uniqueness of its own.  Medicine Lake, which is located about 20 miles west of Minneapolis is a delightful place to just sit and enjoy the view of the lake or follow the walking path along the east and west side.  It’s the second largest lake in the Twin Cities and is surrounded by unique and beautiful homes.

AN INTERESTING SIGN ALONG THE WAY

 

 

 

AN AERIAL PHOTO OF THE LAKE

The weather in the Twin Cities has been unusually warm and sunny for November and perfect for long walks and picture taking.  Here are a few that I’d like to share.

 

 

A CHALLENGE IN WINTER NO DOUBT!

 

SPRAWLING HEIGHTS, A SQUIRREL'S PARADISE!

 

 

GEORGIA O'KEEFFE

PHOTO OF GEORGIA O'KEEFFE BY ALFRED STIEGLITZ, 1918

 

 

Every year about this time, as another birthday approaches, I remember an incredibly talented woman who has always inspired me with her zest and passion for life, her feisty independent spirit, and her bold and beautiful artwork.  I’m also proud to say that she was born and raised in my home state of Wisconsin and shared my same birthdate—November 15.  How I would have loved to have met her! Years ago I had a chance to visit New Mexico, where she spent decades inspiring people around the world with her amazing paintings.

CERRO PEDERNAL MOUNTAIN IN NEW MEXICO

 

Georgia O’Keeffe was born in 1887 near Sun Prairie, Wisconsin.  She was named after her paternal grandfather who came to the U.S. from Hungary in 1848.  Since the age of 10 she had wanted to be an artist and was able to receive art instruction from a local artist. There were times when she doubted her ability to succeed with her artwork, but she became one of America’s most important and beloved artists. In 1977 she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor.  She was 90 years old at the time. She lived another eight years and died in 1986 at the age of 98. Her work is displayed in museums around the world and volumes have been written about her.  Sante Fe, New Mexico proudly honors her work and spirit with the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum.  The area of Taos, New Mexico was beloved by her and inspired much of her work.  She loved the Ghost Ranch area and bought a house there in 1940. She loved painting the mountain Cerro Pedernal and once said, “I painted it often enough thinking that if I did so, God would give it to me.”

Georgia married well-known photographer, art expert, and gallery owner Alfred Stieglitz in 1924.  He exhibited some of her work in New York, where she had moved in 1918.  Her first show included oil paintings and water colors. Stieglitz was twenty-three years older than his wife and she out-lived him by forty years.

GEORGIA O'KEEFFE PAINTING

 

Georgia O’keeffe was known as a loner.  She once said, “I wish people were all trees and I think I could enjoy them then.”  She loved painting nature scenes and often made paintings of clouds and rock formations and flowers. Many of those paintings are displayed in Asia, Europe, and North America.

Remembering a remarkable American artist, here are a few final quotes attributed to her:

            “I’ve been absolutely terrified every moment of my life, and I’ve never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do.”

            “Nobody sees a flower really; it is so small.  We haven’t time, and to see takes time—like to have a friend takes time.”

            “When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it’s your world for the moment.  I want to give that world to someone else.  Most people in the city rush around so, they have no time to look at a flower.  I want them to see it whether they want to or not.”

            “I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say another way—things I had no words for.”

            “The days you work are the best days.”

            “Singing has always seemed to me the most perfect means of expression.  It is so spontaneous.  And after singing, I think the violin.  Since I cannot sing, I paint.”

           

PEACE PILGRIM

From 1953 to 1981 the inspirational woman who chose to be known only as the Peace Pilgrim walked across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico spreading the message of peace and love.  Her pilgrimage started in California.  Within eleven years she had walked over 25,000 miles and at that point stopped counting.  She continued for the next seventeen years, until her death in a car accident as she was being driven to an event in Indiana in 1981.  At that time she was making her seventh trip across the United States.

The Peace Pilgrim was a woman with boundless energy and love.  She stressed a message of simplicity.  She walked alone, without money or organizational backing.  Her goal was to inspire others to work for peace.  She wore a blue shirt, slacks, a tunic with pockets in which she carried a comb, toothbrush, pen, and copies of the message she wanted to share. The message on the front of the blue tunic was “Peace Pilgrim” and “25,000 Miles on foot for peace” on the back.

The Peace Pilgrim became an accomplished speaker along the way, talking to thousands of people of all walks of life.  She was interviewed by national and local television and radio stations and newspapers.  She spoke to university and high school students, churches, and civic clubs.  She was fearless on her walks, never hesitating to walk through ‘dangerous’ parts of cities, as well as rural areas.  She sometimes slept along the side of the road when no alternative was available.  Her message was to get people involved in working for peace. She once said, “I have known that my life work would be for peace—that it would cover the WHOLE PEACE picture:  peace among nations, peace among groups, peace among individuals, and the very, very important inner peace.

 

For the Peace Pilgrim, problems were seen as opportunities.  She once said, “I did as many good things as I could each day, not forgetting the importance of a pleasant word and a cheery smile.  The medicine this sick world needs so badly is love.”

The Peace Pilgrim often spoke of simplifying our lives.  She said, “Instead of hardships, I found a wonderful sense of peace and joy, a conviction that unnecessary possessions are only unnecessary burdens.  I own only what I wear and carry.  There is nothing to tie me down.  I am free as a bird soaring in the sky.  I walk until given shelter, fast until given food.  I don’t ask—it’s given without asking.  I never accept a penny for the work I do.”

The Peace Pilgrim continues to be an inspiration to many, myself included.  I have reread the book about her numerous times and offer these quotes as reminders once again of what an amazing difference one individual can make in our world.

            “Of course I love everyone.  How could I fail to?  Within everyone is the spark of God.  We people of the world need to find ways to get to know one another—for then will we recognize that our likenesses are so much greater than our differences, however great our differences may seem. Every cell, every human being, is of equal importance and has work to do in this world.”

            “To the world I may seem very poor, walking penniless and wearing or carrying in my pockets my only material possessions, but I am really very rich in blessings which no amount of money could buy—health and happiness and inner peace.”

            “Some people seem to think that my life dedicated to simplicity and service is austere and joyless, but they do not know the freedom of simplicity.  I am thankful to God every moment of my life for the great riches that have been showered upon me.  My life is full and good, but never overcrowded.  If life is overcrowded, then you are doing more than is required for you to do.”

            “Think of me and all my earthly possessions.  Think of how free I am.  If I want to travel, I just stand up and walk away.”

            “Live in the present.  Do the things that need to be done.  Do all the good you can each day.  The future will unfold.”

            “Life is like a mirror.  Smile at it and it smiles back at you.”

CLARK'S TALES: THERE'S NEVER ENOUGH TIME. . .

CLARK'S TALES: THERE'S NEVER ENOUGH TIME. . .: Bill Watterson, the Calvin and Hobbes cartoonist once said, "There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want."  After a few weeks o...

THERE'S NEVER ENOUGH TIME. . .

Bill Watterson, the Calvin and Hobbes cartoonist once said, "There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want."  After a few weeks of heightened stress involving jury duty, as well as election concerns, I'm ready and willing to do plenty of NOTHING.  I'm not even going to feel guilty about taking time to just BE.  I feel tremendous satisfaction in completing my jury duty experience, even though I would never have chosen to do it. Being much more of an introvert, the thought of sitting through a jury trial and then deliberating an outcome with eleven strangers raised my stress level more than I'd like to admit. I definitely didn't want to take any calls when I came home.  But I'm glad for the experience and the interesting, caring, and  honest people I met.  They renewed my faith in the way our legal system operates. I will always remember that unique experience.

As far as the election, I'm incredibly glad that it's over as well. It's been a long grind muddling through the issues and ads and returns that came in last night.  It was exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time, but a fascinating process to be a part of.  For the most part, that too renews my faith in our system of selecting leaders.  Last night while I was waiting in the car for another family member to vote, I watched countless families with small children go about their civic duty. Sometimes it was a struggle for them to get the kids in and out, and at one point, I jumped out of the car to rescue a runaway stroller as a mom was busy strapping her two kids into car seats. I admired her commitment. It was a cold and windy night, but she was not going to let anything stop her from voting.  It reminded me of taking my own kids into the voting booth many years ago. 

But now that those important learning experiences have passed, I'm ready to get on with my life in other ways.  I'm excited to dial down the stress level again and just take in the joys and wonders of everyday life.  As Ferris Bueller once said, "Life moves pretty fast.  If you don't stop and look once in a while, you could miss it."  I don't plan to.

And if I start worrying about that next birthday approaching in a week or so, I'm reminded of Emily Dickinson's wise words more than a century ago:  "We turn not older with years, but newer every day."