Thursday, November 16, 2006

MORE ONE LINE OBITUARIES & The Existential Question

shevonne's art

No art today, but I do have this photo of something Shevonne made and sent from LA.

I also found a few one-line obituaries by gleaning the long version for the single sentence that seems to distill the essence of a life. These people particularly inspired me this week:

Christabel Burniston, professional Educationist:

"Still elegant, immaculately dressed and tiny waisted at age ninety, she published a novel.

Ioan Ivancea, Gypsy leader of a Romanian village band:

"Only days before his death, he was still reaching for his clarinet."

And of the marvelously dramatic poet, Francis Berry:


"He was happy to seem a foolish, passionate man."

Now for the infamous existential question: What inspired you this week?

28 comments:

rdl said...

Love these!! Hmm what inspired me this week: Hearing that chocolate is good for you. Got the Winter's Bone yesterday at the library and it looks wonderful - has inspired me to join the chili pepper club here, if it's not to late.

Patry Francis said...

R: So happy you got the book! Now you've got to put the peppers up on your blog!

The Curmudgeon said...

Panic. It's usually panic.

That may not be a true inspiration, but it's sure a good motivation....

Fred Garber said...

My wife came home after spending 2 months in Mexico visiting family. I was getting a little tired of my Italian cooking. The night before last she made some salmon topped with her homemade mango,cranberry,raisin, mushroom and chipotle chile salsa. Last night she made some Veracruz style black bean encrusted fried chicken with rice and fried bananas.

Anonymous said...

Ah, the one for Francis Berry really resonates with me.

This week I was inspired by love and apples. It's usually some combination of love and food, you know, mine or someone else's, or both.

Zhoen said...

"Alice Kavanaugh. A week before she died at age 95, they had to take her cane away, because she was hitting people with it."

My inspiration came from Charles Fort, and the power of myth.

Anonymous said...

. . . going through a rough week and feeling the outpouring of love from my net friends . . . it inspired me to smile and laugh in the middle of it all . . . isn't the net miraculous??? :)

MB said...

Spam! (Email, I mean.)

I want to eat at Fred Garber's house now. ;-)

Lorna said...

A woman my age in a bike helmet with a long grey braid down her back riding her bike in the perilous 3 foot zone between the bus lane and the fasssssst-traffic lane, and doing it with a zen-like smile on her face

rdl said...

ok if i figure out how?? :D

Patry Francis said...

curmudgeon: Panic will do it. Now I've got to check your blog for hints of what you're panicking about.

fred: Now that's what I call inspiring...Will you be posting recipes?

east or OR: Thank you and welcome.

sara: That's your poet's soul speaking. Berry's quote spoke loudly to me, too.

zhoen: Alice K. sounds like the kind of woman I'd like to run into in the afterlife--sans cane, of course.

kate: The way you talked back to all the CRAP inspired me! And yes, miraculous is the word.

mb: See you at Fred's. I just can't decide what I want to try first--the salmon or that bean encrusted chicken. Yum.

lorna: That's one fine visual you just created. I can SEE that zen smile; and what's mroe I can FEEL it.

r: Click on any of my photos and you'll land on my Flicker account. Find the peppers; click on "all sizes" and grab the URL on the size you want.

gerry rosser said...

This week I was inspired by Darlene and her grace under fire.

Anonymous said...

Ah, to still be reaching for your clarinet, AND be happy to be foolishly passionate (whilst having written a novel).
Here's to life: filled to the brim, then savored to the last drop!

The art is intriguing - I'd like to hear the story behind it.

JP (mom) said...

Wonderful one-liners that sum up the joie de vivre of these lives... What inspired me this week? Hmmmm, the first thing that comes to mind is what didn't inspire me this week. As I've been writing more, I find that all the events of my day find their way into my creative soul. If I had to pick one though, my daughters creating a song to sing to me. much peace, JP

Anonymous said...

I forgot to add Doodling! Caroline and Ninnie's doodles have inspired me to doodle even more than I already do(oodle).

Patry Francis said...

gerry: beautiful Darlene always inspires me.

tinker: You've named the one thing that all these disparate lives have in common: they savored life to the end, foolishly, passionately, indomitably.

Deborah: Daughters who create songs for their mom--how lovely!

tinker: Doodling may be just the art form for me. Where do I find Caroline and Ninnie? Are they listed on Kat's site?

robin andrea said...

I am always inspired by taking a good, long look around. The way the clouds change color as the sun goes down. The last few leaves that stay long after the rest have fallen and been blown so far away. The way the wind kicks up sprays of water far out on the bay. The song of bird I don't yet recognize and can not see.

Sustenance Scout said...

I'm inspired to stop by Fred's for dinner and then Robin Andrea's for some peaceful ruminating. And this week I was inspired by Chandra Prasad, a new author I just discovered who's edited an anthology of stories on the multiracial experience. Gotta love the web. K.

Anonymous said...

I've linked to both Caroline and Ninnie in my doodling post, Patry, as well as a sacred doodling site. Doodle away!

herhimnbryn said...

Two things this week:-
1. An elderly client and I laughing together and so hard we had to hang onto each other. Then we both said at the same time, " what would I do without you?"

2. The lighthearted film A good Year, set in Provence. I got up early and got stuck into the gardening!

Patry Francis said...

r.a.: When you look around, everyone who reads your blog sees the world in sharper focus. Keep looking!

k: It's going to be one great party at Fred's. I hope his wife is cooking for a crowd!

tinker: Thanks!

h: laughing so hard that you have to hang onto one another is a lovely image.

And now I'm off to Netflix to check out the film. Thanks for the recommendation.

B.S. said...

I live in Columbus, and I was inspired this week by the reaction of all these die-hard OSU Buckeye fans to the death of rival Michigan's former coach, Bo Schembechler. The respect for humanity, including rivals, which was taught by the great coaches Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler was apparently well learned, not only by the football players they coached but by the population of the cities they lived in. The whole city of Columbus mourned for Michigan's loss, even before, during and following the big game they won Saturday against Michigan. (And I'm not a football fan.)

paris parfait said...

These lines from obits are wonderful. When you think of it, people are just so amazing, with so many hidden depths and talents. This week I've been inspired by a young illegal immigrant in France, who's struggling to stay afloat without getting arrested - and by the French Socialists, who did the unthinkable and shut out the "old boys' network candidates" in favour of a woman!

Darlene said...

My husband clearing his very busy schedual just so he could come home to hold me because I was crying about my health.

which made me cry (happy tears)
love to you Patry,
xox darlene

gerry rosser said...

"I may be gone, but rock and roll lives on." From John Belushi's headstone.

Patry Francis said...

betty: whenever I take interest in football, it's usually because of the human side. What an amazing story; thank you for sharing it here!

tara: I've been pretty inspired by your new French socialist candidate, too. She seems to have both style and substance.

darlene: No wonder you made him your hero this week!

gerry: Another one for my collection; thank you!

Fred Garber said...

Ok...everybody can come over but please bring a side dish, salad or desert.
Patry, I have an idea. Why don't you host a virtual potluck on your blog!

Patry Francis said...

Fred: I'll bring my famous salad: romaine with tomatoes, avocado, red onion, red beans, and feta. But somehow I doubt the virtual pot luck will satisfy my craving for that bean encrusted chicken. Of course, if the pot luck included recipes? Hmm...