lajendi

Is there a "Mormon" genre?

What would Mormon genre be exactly? 

To some people it's science fiction. Recently I read a quote from a Mormon woman author that explained the plethora of successful sci-fi writers in Mormonism by way of our belief in things labeled "unbelievable" by others. (Sorry can't remember exactly who said it, or where I read it! It might have been Shannon Hale.)

Others might say that Mormon genre is a tiny corner of the religious literature genre.

Many teenage girls would say that Mormon literature is all about vampires. 

There is a new site dedicated to Mormon fiction and the opening post doesn't mention any of these possibilities. This paragraph is my favorite (even though I'm posting this you still need to read the full post!):

England’s essay suggests that for Mormon authors to create great literature, they will have a “special respect for language and form” while at the same time draw upon the theological and historical realities of our unique Mormon heritage. England stresses that the themes available to the Mormon artist do not come from our trivial peculiarities, but rather from our unique theology and history. As England states, “I don’t mean irrigation and polygamy and Lamanite warriors but rather a certain epic consciousness and mythic identification with ancient peoples and processes: the theme of exile and return, of the fruitful journey into the wilderness; the pilgrim traveling the dark and misty way to the tree of salvation; the lonely quest for selfhood that leads to conversion and then to the paradox of community; the desert as crucible in which to make saints, not gold; the sacramental life that persists in spiritual experience and guileless charity despite physical and cultural deprivation; the fortunate fall from innocence and comfort into a lone and dreary world where opposition and tragic struggle can produce virtue and salvation.” These themes, argues England, would “nurture” the artist’s imagination “with the most challenging and liberating set of metaphysical possibilities and paradoxes.” Great Mormon literature can only come from Mormon artists who know their Mormon literary heritage, know the forms of their genre, and simultaneously take their craft and their faith seriously.

Which leaves me feeling that I need to take a literature class. Mormon genre doesn't have to be overtly religious to be associated with religion.

I think Orson Scott Card has taken on this challenge by England. I haven't read a lot of his books, but my sister has (feel free to chime in) and she pointed out to me that many of his plots deal with story lines that would be familiar to an educated Mormon, while those not familiar with our liturgy have no idea that the basic story is a re-run. 

Not that I'm calling Card a plagarist or anything. This is the stuff of literature, you are inspired to write by what you've read. How would we know how to write if we didn't read? It happens in every area of the arts, inspiration comes from other artists and sources. I like the thought that ultimately everything we are inspired by, the whole world surrounding us and engulfing us, is made by God so we will never be anything more than children mimicking our ultimate parent. 

 

Thanks for... Books and Writing

 

You say grace before meals. All right. 

But I say grace before the concert and the opera, 

and grace before the play and pantomime,

 and grace before I open a book, 

and grace before sketching, painting, swimming,

 fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing

 and grace before I dip the pen in the ink.

~G.K. Chesterton

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Books and writing expand my soul. Despite this I find myself trying to justify the time I spend on them, especially fiction. Emotionally I feel that what I read and write is of value, it's the logical argument I struggle with. Could my time be better spent folding laundry or visiting the needy? 

This morning as I laid in bed at 4:30 am between Baby, who was recovering from a nightmare, and DH, who is recovering from a horrid cold, I found an answer that soothed my intellect a bit. (Although I was operating on 5 hours sleep, so who knows how logical it really is.) Writing is the development of concepts. The concepts are the skeleton, ideas that fit together to make a framework. Words put flesh on the skeleton. Muscles could be the plot and character development. While the skin could be the story itself - every single little word immaculately crafted. Without any of these aspects the written work is lacking.

Inside the flesh and bones of this creature, the written work, are organs which enable life - brains, heart, intestines, etc. These organs are the writer, hidden deep in the work. Without the writer - his or her heart, brain, intestinal fortitude, digestion of facts, and translation of thought into words with the tongue - the work doesn't exist, there would be no life in the flesh and bone.

Without flesh the skeleton can't operate, there is no interaction. I've never seen a mass of flesh without a skeleton but I can imagine that it would be disconcerting. Similar to the feeling I get when I read a book to it's conclusion only to be befuddled by it's lack of concept. Reading a story which has solid concepts at it's base but the author failed to pay enough attention to the finalizing details is like seeing a person without their skin - it's a person alright, but I'm not about to invite them over. 

Writing is not just putting words on a page. Reading is not just looking at those words. There is development, thought, insight, inspiration, and more, more, more. There is value in reading and writing, fiction or non-fiction. Although I am reluctant to assign a great deal of personal value to some writing (I won't be specific because I don't want to offend ),there is a great deal of modern writing that doesn't have a skeleton. It is hard for me to invest in that type of writing. And giving my time to writing or reading is an investment. Although I do occasionally hang out with books with no skin, as beauty is more than skin deep, after all.  

So the trick is finding and writing a whole creature - bones, flesh, and organs. Figuring this out is a step in the right direction for me... it'll be interesting to watch my work with words unfold. "Life is like a box of chocolates, you just never know what you're gonna get."

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And because I can't ever feel finished with my "Thanks For..." posts I'll end with this- 

Thanks for... Mormonwoman.org

If I could go back through my emails (which were lost in our computer malfunction a few months ago) I would see that it has been about 6 months since I was invited to participate in Mormonwoman.org (MW). 

I got to know Michelle, who is the driving force behind MW, through commenting at Segullah. We both were making comments about trying to live the gospel while living with chronic illness. She is on the admin board at Segullah and so she got my email address and we started emailing supportive emails to each other. I'm so sorry those emails were lost in the computer malfunction. It would be neat to go back and see the genesis of our friendship. 

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Thankfully, Michelle decided I would fit in well at MW. When she asked me to be a part of the site I was shocked and excited. I never imagined that I could be a part of leading something so great. It was also a little intimidating to think that I would be informally representing the LDS church on the internet, imperfect me. I had been thinking about increasing my writing opportunities so it was a perfect fit. It was a chance to write and explore concepts dear to my heart, while influencing others for good, and supporting the spread of the gospel. This opportunity was golden. 

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After introductions to the other women at MW, and warm welcomes through cyber space, I stuck my toe into the water and began contributing to the site. This was my first post at MW, a blog post that Michelle found on my site that resonated with her. I still feel good about that post, and even wonder if I should back off on highlighting my hair in full devotion to those ideas ;)

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This summer, while visiting Utah, I had the opportunity to meet my new cyber sisters from MW in real life. They welcomed me warmly. It was awkward at first to feel comfortable in the presence of "strangers" but after a few minutes I recognized their personalities. It was wonderful to have faces to associate with the beautiful personalities I had come to know. The evening was far too short, but I came away sharing the amazing vision Michelle and Janelle had for the site. Again, I was humbled to be a part of it all. 

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Another great memory in my MW experience is getting to know Emily. I interviewed her in preparation to write her profile recently. We keep in touch, through blogs and frequent emails. Her understanding and application of the gospel is amazing, I guess that's what you get when you add psychologist, theologist, and new convert to Mormonism into one. I love her and hope we get to meet in real life sometime. 

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The women I have profiled for MW have a common experience with the process. All of them are shy about sharing who they are, even though they are amazing, they don't know it. It makes me happy when they see their life in black and white on the site and realize that they really are doing good things with their lives. It's fulfilling to have a part in making that happen. Hopefully it gives them encouragement to continue. (If you know of an amazing woman I should profile, tell me about her!)

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Through all of this I have tried to write a piece for MW weekly. Sometimes the words flow easily and I am able to share bountifully. Other times it is difficult to open my heart and soul to the internet. Thankfully, I don't have to moderate comments on MW so I don't know about hurtful comments that are submitted but not posted. Even with the difficulties, I thoroughly enjoy my work for MW. It is not a formal calling in the church, but I feel I am meeting the admonition "to be anxiously engaged in a good cause" (D&C 58:27). I have chosen to dedicate what little free time I have to this cause because  it changes lives and improves the world. 

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"In Alma’s day 'the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it … had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them—therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God' (Alma 31:5).

"True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behavior. The study of the doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior."   -Boyd K. Packer

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Today I am thankful to have the opportunity to contribute to mormonwoman.org and to interact with the wonderful women there.

Thanks for... Creation

Creating something from nothing takes... something. It's a quality difficult to describe, and I don't really want to label it for fear of someone saying, "I don't have that, no wonder I don't create." Everyone creates. 

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain was my first formal introduction to creating. We all create, we've been doing it since day one (creating poo-poo). But to think about the act of creating takes our work to another level. Creating deliberately, consciously. 

          (Walden Pond)

"I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately, I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life. To put to rout all that was not life and not when I had come to die discover that I had not lived." Henry David Thoreau

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain did two things for me. First it shattered my prideful conceit that I was magnanimously bestowed with the ability to create art. The book told me that anyone could draw, and it showed the living proof. At that time in my life I was a high school student desperately clinging to my identity as "artsy fartsy" and so I was able to walk to my own beat and hold my head high. When the rug was pulled out from under me I wanted to refuse the notion, (I had my niche!) but it struck home too squarely for me to deny it. It forced me to see that it wasn't just creating art that made me special, it was that I created MY art. Being true to myself, not letting art teachers have too much say, was what made my work valuable. 

The second thing the book did for me was to open my mind to the multitude of creative possibilities in the world. If anyone could draw, maybe anyone could paint with watercolor. I had a bad time with watercolor, it just didn't work, it all ended up mud. That was fine, I dedicated myself to other mediums- acrylic paints, printmaking, sculpture. But then my art teacher pushed me a little, just try it. I did, it was great, and my art teacher bought the resulting painting. 

This little lesson stayed with me. I kept trying new things, because if anyone can draw, maybe anyone can act... Maybe anyone could write... 

There is a scary moment when you're creating. The moments between idea and done are tenuous. When you have an idea you can say, "I have this idea..." and go on about your grand plans, embellishing, dreaming, making it lovely in your mind. But eventually, if you are serious about creation, you have to turn out a physical manifestation of your idea. This is the scary part. Because first tries are seldom glorious. As you look at your first attempt and know that it just doesn't measure up, that you've failed, you have to find the strength to try again. It goes against our natural instincts. Usually when we fail our first thought is to throw in the towel and go home. But anyone who has been successful in creating, (and you all have) knows that somehow you try again. 

This is one part of the creating process I've become addicted to. Try, fail, try again. CRAZY! But there is an adrenaline rush in it for me now. Can I do it better? What would make it better? Oh, if I do that... then I could do this! Try it. Fail again? Try again!! 

 

"There is no try, there is only do." -Yoda

You do it again and again and again until it is right. And sometimes when you get it right, it's right only because you've run out of time and perfection just isn't obtainable. 

In our modern world we're being sold an idea of perfection that just isn't real. Perfect romances in the movies. Perfect children in books. Perfect bodies via Photoshop. The more we buy into that impossible idea of perfection, the less we will create because failure looms too large. The key is to know that creation isn't perfection- it's a work in progress. 

And the progress is good. It's really good. 

Faith, Miracles, and a New Calling

Almost a month ago I wrote an essay for Mormonwomen.org about faith and miracles. As sometimes happens, the essay just didn't fit in the schedule for a while. Today this essay, that deals with some issues which are very personal, is posted.

It is not a coincidence that on the same day my own essay reminds me of faith and hope, I receive a new calling at church. It took a huge amount of faith to accept this calling. With all that is happening in my life, it was a leap of faith to say "yes". That scene from the 3rd Indiana Jones movie comes to mind - the one where Indiana has to step into what looks like a giant chasm, but there turns out to be an optical illusion and there really is a rock bridge under his feet.

I feel like I've just taken the step, but my foot hasn't landed on solid ground yet. I don't know that I can do this calling, stay healthy, take care of my family, and continue with college classes. I don't know at all. But I have faith.

"faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true." Alma 32:21

I believe that God knows what is going on with my body and will lead me to get the help I need to serve him. I also know that God, through his servants (my church leaders), has asked me to serve him in this specific way - in a calling that demands not only faithful understanding of the gospel but also that I be an example.

Honestly, I'm scared, I don't have a perfect knowledge of how this will work out. I do know it won't be easy, even the stake counselor that called me told me as much.

What I do know is what I've learned from my previous callings. I know that God will help me accomplish more than I could ever do without him. I know that God can help me serve while being ill, or he can heal me. I know that I have choices, I can change my life to fit what God asks of me. I know that my husband is supportive and loving, that he will help me manage. I know God will help and bless my family in ways I can't see now. I know that I will have wonderful uplifting, and fun, experiences serving as the 2nd counselor in the stake young women's presidency.

Meet Emily...

The last few weeks I have gotten to know an amazing woman. Actually the word I use for her now is awesomesauce, she taught it to me.

Usually when I write profiles for the Mormon Women website they are for women I already know in some way. But this time I was asked to interview a woman I didn't know, her name is Emily. So I went in cold turkey, it was a little strange (for her also I think). I am so grateful the opportunity was given to me, because it is now a friendship I treasure. Her story is overwhemingly powerful.

Please check out Emily's life story at Mormonwomen.org, in two parts. The first is today and second will be posted Thursday. Here is the first paragraph to get you started:

At the impressionable age of nine, Emily witnessed the murder of her 13-year-old sister at the hands of their own mother. After hearing this one fact about Emily, probably much like you, I wanted to know more about her. Thankfully she has an open heart, even after all she has been through, and is willing to share it with us. However, this is not about relating the negative experiences that Emily had to endure as a child, it is about the healing that she has found since that time.

Emily is also a blogging maniac. Her site is full of spiritual insights but also the details of her incredible life that I just couldn't fit into my profile for Mormon Women. I am inspired every time I interact with Emily. She isn't perfect, but she's moving forward, and that is inspiring after all she's been through. 

The writing had an added level of intensity because right now Emily is in the Mayo Clinic. She just underwent testing and heart surgery, the post on Thursday will have more information about it. She could use your prayers for healing and strength.  

I just can't say it enough - AWESOMESAUCE!

New job - without pay

Yesterday I became the newest member of the Food Co-op marketing commitee. Sounds all official but it was three women and two children sitting around a table talking about upcoming co-op events.

I received an invitation to this meeting because I volunteered to help with the newsletter. I volunteered to help with the newsletter, despite my crazy life, because every member of the co-op has to put in 4 hours of service each month. Now that school is in session I don't want to spend my valueable alone hours working in the co-op (it doesn't even have windows to see outside!). So I thought I could write a simple newsletter article once a month, thus putting in my four hours, from the comfort of my own home while still attending to the kiddos.

But ahhhh, life has plans much greater for you and I. "Why set your sights so low, just a writer?" the universe whispers in my ear. And then the co-op president says, very loudly across the table, "So you want to coordinate the newsletter?" It's only this, and that, whatever you make it, whenever you want.... but it needs to go out in a .pdf format. You have Adobe Acrobat and know how to use it, right?

I honestly didn't know. Didn't I download something just the other day called Adobe? They ignored my deer eyes and moved on. That was it, it's my job.

Problem is, someone else has the job, she just wasn't at the meeting. I don't know if she doesn't want the job, or if you don't show up they give it to someone who does. But I'm supposed to change the newsletter she made up, and keep her happy so she'll still work with me. Yes, this will be fun. All in just 4 hours a month. I think there is a reason she didn't go to the meeting.

Please, someone who is experienced in Adobe tell me if it is impossible to learn in 4 hours. Also tell me where it has just fallen off the back of a truck, because it's only $449 to buy legally!

Yes, I anticipate the Co-op finding another newsletter coordinator soon if this all hinges on .pdf.  

National Parks by Ken Burns

Here's a reminder to watch the new Ken Burns documentary The National Parks on PBS. It actually started last night but I forgot to remind you.  If you missed the first episode in the series you can watch it online.

 I would be a different person without our family trips to National Parks.

I remember learning endurance when, as a tiny child, my parents tortured my small frail legs by forcing me to hike at Arches National Park. Only to then hike it as an adult and learn that I was being a whiner all those years ago. Then I saw the pictures and realized that they made me hike in a dress and then I  knew that they were mean!

We went to Yellowstone too, the National Park and an elementary school named after it. The paint pots were hysterically funny- What's not to love about a naturally occuring feature that smells and sounds like farts and makes bubbles?! Old Faithful Geyser is such a part of who I am that it is astonishing to me that my children haven't been there, how could I be so derelict in my parental duties? It is so fresh in my mind, but really it has been too long since I've felt the geyser spray on my face. The lake, the falls, the hikes that are too long because you want to see just one more rainbow pool. We've got to get back there.

I think it was there that my Dad first taught us about manners in nature. Pick up everything, but not the flowers. Stay on the trail. Don't touch animals, never feed them. Be quiet. Leave it better than you found it. These rules were sacred. I mean even more than when we were at home. I felt it when we were out there.

My parents were brave. There was a trip, in my faint memory, down to the dusty southwest. Mesa Verde and Carlsbad Caverns. Being the parent of children now I know they must have had a deep desire to see those places to be willing to drag four children along. It could not have been a picnic. At Mesa Verde there was whining about heat and lack of water. Now I wish, I really really wish, I could remember seeing it.

At Carlsbad my little brother freaked out so Mom spent her day sitting on the rim of the cave. Back then I didn't think a wit about what my parents were getting out of it. At Carlsbad I thought how cool it was to ride an elevator in a cave. Then I got chills, and not the scared kind, as I watched the bats rush out of the cave by the hundreds. When we got home I loved to tell my friends where I went on my summer vacation. Not to Disneyland, but to Mesa Verde and Carlsbad Caverns. It just danced off my tongue.

That's just a few I can think of this afternoon. Thank you to all of you co-owners in the National Parks. I've used more than my fair share of them in my lifetime, but I still need to see those Giant Redwoods and Yosemite.

Tell me, how have you used the National Parks? And which one do you want to see that you haven't yet?

busy writing

It is good when my body fails me to have other talents and options for work and productivity. This is a huge blessing of our modern society. One of my essays is now on display at Mormon Woman, and many more are in the works.

I am grateful for how well my mental faculties work. Even if at the same time I lament the things I cannot do because of my physical limitations. I miss really heart pumping, muscle burning workouts. I miss being outgoing and friendly, pain overwhelms me a lot and it takes effort now to do things socially when it never did before. It worries me that people might think this change in me is something about them. But at the same time I don't talk about being sick. I don't like being sick. It is hard to describe, it changes all the time, the vocabulary isn't sufficient, and negative stereotypes abound. So I just avoid the whole mess by not talking about it most of the time. Many thanks to the few people who do listen when I talk about it. Listening to people talk about health issues is one of the great discomforts of life- enough to make your buttcheeks find a mobility of their own to get you out of there when the discussion starts. Thank you to DH, Ashley, Michelle, and Kathy who just listen with out comparing, one-upping, judging, or labeling. I'm confused, lost, and in pain; your support makes my life easier.

I'm confused as to what to do next medically. I have physical therapy, which will help my knees, but I have other issues which need to be addressed before our deductable starts up again in January. Which doctors do I ask about which issues? Sometimes it comes down to very personal questions. How much relief from pain should I expect to get? Should I expect to live with nausea from meds? How confident am I about my issues being related to joint hypermobility? Am I willing to stand up for myself? And how much do I really understand to make competent decisions when my head hurts all the time?

I'm Posting at Segullah Today!

This simple exchange from Alice in Wonderland sums up how I feel about my writing  now:

" 'There's no use trying,' Alice said. 'One can't believe impossible things.'

" 'I daresay you haven't had much practice,' said the Queen. 'When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.' "

Check out the next step in my impossible adventure here.