The Eye – Paul Bowles

Paul Bowles December 30, 1910 – November 18, 1999

One can find quite a lot of information on Paul Bowles. I recognized his name from the research done on his wife Jane after her inclusion in BASS 1978.

This was an interesting story and I think it appealed to the readers of 1979. I would thank that a majority of the readers of BASS in the 1970’s would be familiar with Morocco and that it still had the exotic spice surrounding it left over from the Beats. Not to mention Ginsburg’s time there and Leary drawing attention to North Africa.

This story was interesting in that it gave me a chance to gain wisdom once again to the differing cultures that we have in this world but a the same time, basic human desires and behaviors cross all of the potential barriers that we think of existing between the worlds.

Underneath it all, we are human.

I really don’t have much else to say about this story. It hasn’t stirred any particular passions in me. I will say though that I really like the photo that precedes this post and I have included a photo of Paul and Jane below that I am quite taken with.

Score 7 out of 10

Trip in a Summer Dress – Annette Sanford

Annette Sanford ( 1929 - )

Decisions.

We make them daily.

Minute by minute, day by day, and at those special moments of crossroads, those very decisions can alter your future in ways that you can never imagine.

Sanford provided me with a nice device to reflect on my past decisions and those that will arise in my near future.

Concerning the story, I’ve always wondered about young unwed mothers and how the pregnancy alters their lives. It’s too often that we see the result of an unsuccessful life of a single mother and child. Those who are able to pull it off rarely get a second glance because of their success and ability to seamless integrate into the “normal” lives of the rest of us.

Bus rides – they suck and are scary. I’ve made them as a young boy and as a college student. They are cheap, dirty, and long and make the riders feel like ass.

Back to decisions.

I chastise myself daily for some of the decisions I make. They are the decisions I make that I know are wrong but for whatever reason, I continue to make.

For the most part though, I make some pretty good decisions. I have a pretty good set of conservative rails that I ride on but the chance to exercise some freedom from those rails comes often and the decisions I make rarely cause trouble.

Looking at my profile, it’s easy to see the major decisions that I have made in my life. Looking deeper into these posts, you can see the more minute decisions and how they have caused my life to venture off down different roads.

I’m pretty firm in wanting the ability to make my own decisions...liberal and conservative – either way, I want the control.

Sports or NJROTC

Civilian College or Military University

4 years or the rest of your life

New Jersey or Virginia

Virginia or New Jersey

Blue Collar or White Collar

Military Service or Peace Corps

Quitting or finishing what you started

Leaving behind someone you love or taking her with you

Score 8 out of 10.

The Quarterback Speaks to His God – Herbert Wilner

I started this story and soon realized that it had a sports theme. My automatic switch to dislike stories with sports themes tripped, and I sighed and felt myself sink into the couch and began reading with the thought that I am about to waste more of my life.

I’d say about half way into the book, I came to the realization that this story was starting to grow on me and that I might actually like it. I began to draw parallels with the main character – which is what I am attempting to do in all of these stories – and I saw that one end of the line was pointing at me.

The competitiveness of character, the desire to succeed in the face of physical breakdown, the denial of weakness in a once great athlete. The failure to see that the once high performance body is starting to fail in its deliverance.

In my running, I really push myself. I run far and for long periods of time. In doing so, I feel that my body is getting stronger...parts of my body...the muscles, including the heart, lungs and tendons. But my joints are taking a beating. The cement sidewalks and asphalt roads are just crushing me. I have a difficult time admitting that I may need to take a break. I don’t want to stop, to cut the distance. If anything, I want to run further and longer.

As humans, we have limits to what our bodies can handle. I want to push mine to the edge and further. I force my mind to conquer my body and push it further. I use my mind to heal my sore muscles and stiff joints. I use my mind to convince my body that there is no distance that it cannot run.

I love this daily challenge. It strengthens me. It forces me to see myself as something more than just an average human. I can create a superior specimen.

But in this knowledge, I know that this ability to create exists in all of us. We can all push further, be stronger physically and mentally. The spite and anger that I feel towards humans who let their lives waste away at times feels as if it will overcome me and cause me to say nasty things to those who don’t share my outlook.

Harder, Stronger, Faster and Smarter!

Score 9 out of 10.

The Middle Place – Mary Hedin

Mary Hedin –

We struggle in life to find that “Middle Place”. I think that the movement for me to my “Middle Place” started about 5 years ago. I had settled into work, adjusted well to married life, and found that the life I was and am currently living will be just fine.

Now in order to gain perfect balance in our” Middle Place”, we need to incorporate the lives of our family into the equation. M is still going through the discovery of her “Middle Place”, and I am pretty hands off and am allowing her to make the discoveries herself. I am a big fan of allowing others to experiment, try, succeed or fail. I have complete faith in what she can and will do with her life, and ultimately our lives together.

I take pride in my flexibility. Sure, I seem rigid at times but I think upon closer examination, I am pretty liberal. I understand the need for practicality and the need not to waste the opportunities or resources that we currently have, but if the opportunity is right, and the legs of a situation are strong, I see no reason why we couldn’t jump into a new stream of living, and in doing so, finding our “Middle Place” together. I love the daily discovery of my attempts to find my place and our place in this world.

Here are the final few sentences from the short. They are all at once perfect!

“Oh certainly the center is beautiful and mat seem secure, but that is, of course, only illusion. There is no stasis ever. There is never that. She turns to Aaron, holds his warm body close to her own, wanting now to comfort him as well as herself for what he does not confess he knows.”

Other than reading short stories, I enjoy reading about authors, what inspires them, their personal views of writing and their philosophies of life. I found two quotes from Hedin that dovetail well with the story as well as with my personal view of the craft and world.

Of her writing, she says, “For me it is a central need, a basic drive. I can exist only so long before I must sift through the mysteries of human behavior and clarify my experiences.”

Hedin told CA: "Some children know from their earliest exposure to music that they will become musicians, and some children know from the time they first listen to stories or hear poems that they will be writers. I made up my mind very early that I would be a writer.”

Score 9 out of 10.