“Friendship is unnecessary like
philosophy, like art…It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things
which give value to survival.” (Is C.S. Lewis a member of the Pinnacle
community?)
19 Bookers entered the majestic Kingdom of
Thailand, the world’s fiftieth largest country with its lush jungles and serene
beaches, and a population of sixty-nine million people, at the home of Bonnie
Magee for this month’s meeting. Many thanks to Rosemary Farmer for co-hosting
and to Rokhshie Malone for providing the yummy treats. Our in-house thespian
and newlywed on Valentine’s Day 65 years ago, Bernie Crudden, thanked everyone
for their wonderful contributions to her “Screenplay of Wellness” offered by
Bookers to help alleviate her anxiety in the face of the frightening surgery
she underwent last month. She reports they are slowly weening her off the pain
medications…so far so good…no pain. Also, thanks to Barbara Creach for designing
the covers for this project!
Our reviewer and tour guide, Jean
Alexander, recalled memories of three trips to this remarkable country, in
particular the unique family excursion in 2015 when ten “Alexanders” went to an
elephant sanctuary in northern Thailand, each assigned their own floppy-eared
pachyderm. Elephants have voracious appetites, eating sixteen to eighteen hours
a day. The group learned how to tell if they were healthy, if they slept well,
and were getting proper nutrition. Despite their enormous size, they are
generally docile and almost humanlike in nature but in order to ride an
elephant, it’s necessary to scale up their legs to grab onto their necks or be
flung up by their trunk. Jean shared their photo album of their time with the
elephants in the river. It was hard to tell who was having more fun.
The novel unfolds as single mom and
veterinarian, Natalie DeAngelo, experiencing irreconcilable grief after her two
sons were killed in a school shooting, picks up stakes to volunteer in an
elephant sanctuary in northern Thailand. In this exotic location meant to heal
there are challenges, none more vivid than her own PTSD, coupled by the
sanctuary’s in-house vet who holds a long-time grudge against her, and a female
elephant suffering the same debilitating disease as Natalie’s…Sophie’s caused
by human abuse. Natalie and Sophie, one human, one animal cut from the same
cloth, both “raging inside against some horrible agony…overwhelmed by sadness
and pain.” Sophie is confined to a smaller area offering security much like
baby swaddling or a thunder shirt on a dog, while Natalie too is confined in a
smaller place – hers in the middle of the jungle away from the glare of
tragedy. The parallel between Natalie and Sophie tells the tale of survivor
guilt and grief as they both struggle to find a way to heal and learn to trust
again. The novel is deeply emotional exploring the capacity of a mother’s love
and the long journey of repossessing their lives.
In typical fashion, Jean took off her
shoes, attached a blonde braid to her hair, stripped down to shorts and a tee
shirt to become Natalie asking us to close our eyes to feel the pain in the
words used in a conversation between Natalie and her mother. “The
pain of losing a child never abates….it’s indescribable…sometimes the grief is
like a freight train without brakes…even you cannot possibly understand the
impossible agony of putting one foot in front of the other…there’s nothing more
difficult…than just living.”
The majority of our group felt this
selection was a Bookers’ cup of tea – backflips – from the “management.” Our
conversation centered on gun violence and whether our schools are safe, the
emphasis of structure and religion in our lives, the recognition and importance
of treatment for depression, the virtual reality of violent video games and how
they foster a feeling of invincibility without consequences. We discussed how
“animals make us more human” and the study of animal behavior mirroring the
concepts of belonging. We talked about the Buddhist religion and rituals, their
traditions and values. We may have wondered why Natalie seemed to focus more on
one son over the other, but not enough to set off any flares with what really
happened at the school. Also, Peter’s transformation into a more tolerable
human being proved that you don’t know what someone is going through until you
walk in their shoes. We discussed the viability of animals showing profound
grief even in the wild, especially elephants. One study highlights how young
elephants seeing their mothers being killed often wake up screaming and in
another, a news report how they show compassion to nonrelatives as an elephant
in Kenya trampled a human mother and her
child, but stopped to bury them before disappearing in the brush.
And, of course, the eventual demise of
Sophie tore at our heartstrings, especially with the title of the book coming
to life with the elephants “mourning parade.” They came to her one by one using
their trunks to smell her, lifting their foots to touch her body, running their
trunks along her backbone, but also reaching out to Natalie inside their
circle, offering her the same comfort, then walking to the river in silence.
Tissues please!
We talked about the wonderful quotes at
the beginning of the chapters, the author’s use of these are called organizing
principles…letting the reader know what the chapter is about. Ms. Langley did a
superb job of collecting some memorable sayings…words to live by in our
ordinary lives. We are reminded the dead are constantly remembered by those who
mourn…the goal is not to be the first one across the finish line…empty words
without thoughts indicates no remorse…when elephants fight the grass suffers,
meaning when the large fight, it is the small who suffer most…one touch of
nature makes the whole world kin meaning that human emotion has the effect of
bringing people closer together…don’t let your fire go out…keep your dream
alive…mortals are unable to keep secrets because deep down, we do not want
to…life will break you…you have to love, you have to feel.
And, an overwhelming favorite from Buddha,
“Every
experience, no matter how bad it seems, holds within it a blessing of some
kind. The goal is to find it.” Natalie survived and moved forward by
focusing on the plight of others and not her own pain. The elephants,
especially Sophie, gave her a new direction…a way to put one foot in front of
the other.
On
the Business Side
We are hoping for a great turnout for our March 13 meeting, as the author of The
Rainwater Secret, Monica Shaw, will be our guest. I’ll provide an
overview of the book and she will offer a slideshow presentation along with
questions & answers. Books will be available for purchase for $15.00, cash,
check, or credit card. Since Monica is driving in from Dallas, we wanted to
have a light luncheon for her and our food czar Bonnie Magee, is once again
coordinating this for us. We’ll have an array of salads, casseroles, desserts,
and deviled eggs and if you have volunteered to bring something, please email
Bonnie at bonniemagee@embarqmail.com. I will be asking
for a head count so please RSVP to me by March 6 at mickjo16tee@aol.com so we can coordinate the amount of
food needed.
Books
in Bloom
luncheon will be held April 13, 2018
again at the Methodist Church in Athens. As you remember, this is the major
fundraiser for the Henderson County Clint W. Murchison library. The speaker is Jeff
Abbott, touted as one of the best thriller writers in the business. He’s from
Austin and will be discussing his latest, Blame. Tickets are $50.00 per
person, $400.00 for a table of 8. Bookers has one table full (Pat Faherty,
Melanie Prebis, Rokhshie Malone, Beverly Dossett, Rebecca Brisendine, Patty
Evans, Barbara Creach, and yours truly.) If you are interested in attending,
please let me know and we’ll make that happen as well.
COLOR
CODING SYSTEM
WHITE: LIGHT READ
PINK: MODERATELY
CHALLENGING
RED: CHALLENGING
March
13 The
Rainwater Secret by Monica Shaw
Debut historical fiction
by Dallas author based on the life of her great aunt, a missionary woman in
Africa teaching leper children.
PINK
Home
of Patty Evans
We
are excited to announce the author will be joining us for the meeting
April
10 The
Uncertain Season by Texas author Ann Howard Creel
Follows the lives of three
women in the aftermath of the 1900 hurricane that devastated Galveston…one
living a privileged life, her disgraced and flamboyant cousin, and an unnamed
girl living on the streets.
Home
of Sandy Molander
Reviewer:
TBD
May
15 Change of date due to travel plans
To Everything A Season
– Sherri Schaeffer, a debut set in Amish country in Lancaster Pennsylvania
where two worlds collide forcing them together.
Home
of Donna Walter
Reviewer:
TBD
Summer
Read: America’s
First Daughter by Stephanie Dray & Laura Kamoie
Thomas Jefferson’s eldest
daughter, Martha, “Patsy” becomes the keeper of the secrets and her father’s
confidant after her mother’s death and his appointment as the American Minister
to France.
“To learn about yourself you need to study
how others respond to you…people can only make you feel the way you give them
permission to.”
Happy Reading,
JoDee
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