Friday, July 11, 2014

TALES FROM THE BAYOU: In The Land Of Mythology








I knew I wanted to be a writer from a very young age. I started out with poetry around age eight and completed two volumes of poetry...including some collaborations with my sister...by the time I reached my teenage years.

Growing up in such a strict environment didn't always allow me to blossom and by the time I was a teenager I had become an extremely shy, introverted girl. While I excelled in anything academic, socially I was invisible in the hallways of my school. I spent a lot of time in the library and poured over books like I had uncovered some long lost treasure.

This was about the same time I discovered mythology and would spent my lunch time pouring over the adventures of Hercules and the power of Zeus. My favorite stories came from the Greeks and the Romans so it was no surprise to me when I decided one day to start researching those ancient tales. I wanted to contrast and compare the different mythological characters I came across. I even thought about writing a children's book where you could look up one hero's name and discover if they were called something different in another culture.

After months of research I had managed to fill up several notebooks with information and I was quite proud of my fledgling efforts to become a nonfiction writer.  I thought my mother would be proud as well because she was known for her extensive research of country and western artists. My mother had several notebooks filled with the words of her favorite songs and tidbits of information on the top country performers of her generation so I felt she knew what it meant to love the thrill of the hunt for knowledge.

Sadly, I was wrong.

I can remember one hot summer day when Mother was rocking on the front porch swing. I was about thirteen at the time and decided to share my love of mythology with Mother by showing her my research notebooks. To say my mother wasn't happy with what she considered a waste of paper and a good pencil would be an understatement. She thought it was a foolish endeavor and forced me to stand in front of her while I tore up every page of my notebooks. No amount of begging or tears could save all my hard work and I left my dreams of becoming a nonfiction writer on the floor that day.

But over the years I have discovered many surprising things about myself. One thing I've discovered is that while I thought my dream of writing nonfiction was shattered, it was just lying dormant until the day I felt strong enough to pick up my pencil again and write. Last year I even began researching an idea my sister told me about and that nudge of encouragement from her has blossomed into a story recently submitted to my publisher. My editor is very excited about it so I will cross my fingers and hope for the best. 

Either way, I feel like I have taught my younger self a valuable lesson. There will always be people in the world...even those closest to you...who might strive to shatter your dreams and laugh as those dreams lie in shards upon the floor. But it's what you do in those low moments which gives the world a glimpse of the writer you have yet to become. I could have let my mother's indifference destroy my love of writing.

I chose to follow a different path...



4 comments:

  1. Hi Donna .. that's desperate - and such a terrible thing for you to have deal with, especially as it was your mother inflicting her wishes on you .. ridiculous. I'm glad you're following another path .. and I sure hope many other youngsters won't be discouraged to write along their journey of life ..

    It must have been such an interesting project - and perhaps relatively an easy one to restore, with some additional material I expect to be found ... sad to read this .. but then you're strong and independent and writing ... well done - Hilary

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Hilary! These tales I tell are merely a peek into my past and doesn't usually affect my life now. My mother found herself in a frustrating position early on in her marriage and years later shared her frustration with her children through her treatment of them. I wish she would have lived long enough to escape when I did but God had other plans for her...

      Thanks for stopping by and come back any time!

      Delete
  2. Mother said yours was wasteful and mine was stupid. But I know that today she would be very proud of your achievements so far and the ones yet to come.
    There is one poem that you and I wrote that NO ONE will ever see--maybe your son???--and you know which one it is. Hint: Drops...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Janet! I have NO DOUBT Mother would have been a different person if she would have left Gueydan when she got the chance and STAYED AWAY!! But then maybe WE wouldn't have ever met...;-)

      And yes, I well remember that poem...lol...

      Thanks for stopping by and come back any time!

      Delete