Dear Mr. Steinbeck,
In my copy of your book, The Red Pony, there is my scribbling handwriting all through the margins; covering the page numbers; words of mine, falling off the page; gobbling up every ounce of blank paper they could find.
Your words and my words intertwine on the pages of your book.
You led me past the plot of your book to one of life’s greatest themes: the intertwining of life and death. Almost everything in your book reflects that theme and almost everything in life is that theme.
Because of your book, I have become more aware of the life-and-death situations in my life: those that have happened, are happening, and probably will happen in the future.
When I think about life and death, I picture some of the people I know who have died—doing something so lively. I think about Maison, who died snowboarding. And JK who died crossing the street after covering an exciting football game for Channel 2. And Mr. Bell, my friend’s grandfather who died after eating lunch with his wife and his granddaughter. And Rebecca Rose who died during childbirth.
It is ironic, but it is the way the world works. It is the truth.
And you, Mr. Steinbeck, you are not afraid to tell the truth.
From you, I know that life and death are intertwined. They come together in the past, in the present, and I know they will in the future. But for now, those future events are things that I do not like to think about. Instead, I will have fun with life like Jody when he marches along with his imaginary army.
Thank you, Mr. Steinbeck for writing this book.
Sincerely,
Eleanore
Eleanore, I watched you move through the stages of writing this letter and I have to commend you for your insistence that it become "better" than your first draft. You spent HOW long on one word? Intertwined took maybe 30 minutes to find? I think it's an amazing realization for YOU to know you will WORK for the right word...Pretty cool. Also, I love that you still feel so strongly about that theme that resonated with you from the start. Wasn't it amazing to try to end this thing on a personal note? Writing this made you THINK HARD ABOUT THINGS YOU DIDN'T WANT TO THINK ABOUT. In the end, you chose to say you didn't want to write about the future of death in your life, and that is just as good as writing about the future of death in your life. You know what I mean? Honesty in writing is the first priority. Just like Steinbeck, you tell the truth. Nicely done. Of course, I think you should combine your first entry on life and death with this letter. But that's just me, your WRITING COACH! ;) Me
ReplyDeleteEleanore, I like how you said to Steinbeck that he is not afraid to tell the truth. By saying that, you are not afraid to tell the truth. I also like how you worded your second paragraph, "Your words and my words intertwine on the pages of your book." I have always wondered about the origin of the word "intertwine". It is such an interesting word.
ReplyDeleteYacob
Thanks guys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (deep breath) !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(deep breath)!! Ahh. Never mind.
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