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There’s a book that I think several of my readers will have an interest in, particularly veterans. It’s called Heroes Among Us by Hal Terrell. It’s the story of “twenty-two boys who grew up in a small western Colorado town during The Great Depression and how they dealt with their circumstances. It also delves into each individual’s WWII experiences and what each one did after WWII to help build America into what it is today. There’s a multitude of information on the book’s website but since I’ve been corresponding with Mr. Terell, I wanted to share what he had to say about how he decided to write the book.

Dear Cheryl

It was a sunny day but a bit chilly as I stood among thousands of white marble crosses. My wife and I came to this place to honor the memory of all the young men who fought and died here on D-Day and the following few days after June 6, 1944. United States and Allied Forces landed on the beaches of Normandy, France on D-Day to liberate Europe from German occupation, one of the most significant and imortant events in the annuals of military history. We also wanted to honor all of America’s young men who fought and died on every other far flung shore or foreign country during WWII. It had been over sixth years since that morning of June 6,1944 when American forces stormed ashore at Omaha and Utah beaches. Time has inevitably relegated their heroic deeds and suffering to a storage room of dusty archives and all that remains are the fading memories of those who lived through those terrible days. Time is gradually defeating all WWII veterans. That is something Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany could not do.

During the D-Day cermony I, along with two other WWII veterans, was given the honor and the privilege of placing the memorial wreath at the feet of the “Spirit of American Youth” statue during the cermony on June 6, 2001.

At the conclusion of the wreath-laying ceremony I found myself strolling slowly among the white marble crosses. All I could hear was the soft whisper of a sea breeze caressing my face, the sound of the surf against the sandy beach below, and the twittering of the birds in the surrounding trees. As I looked around, I realized I was standing in a place where every blade of grass appeared to have its own private caretaker. Yet, I felt no joy or particular appreciation for the aesthetic value of this place. I was completely overwhelmed with a somber and desperate feeling of sadness and grief that surrounded me. My emotions were almost uncontrollable as I struggled to get my breath. I felt tears streaming down my cheeks. I felt a burning lump in my throat and my body began to involuntarily shake. Suddenly the silence was broken by a soft, low moaning or sobbing sound. I looked around to see who was in distress but no one was near me. I suddenly realized the sobs and moans were coming from my own chest and throat. That was the moment when I decided that I had to located the boys I had gone to grade school and high school with and document their stories and experiences. The result ended up as a book, HEROES AMONG US.

Sincerely,
Hal Terrell

Mr. Terrell also sent me the following.”Perhaps you can use some of the comments made by some of my readers. I can honestly say that I never received one single comment that was derogatory.

THE GLENWOOD POST INDEPENDENT
“A reader is fortunate when he hooks into a book that is so good he doesn’t want it to end. A newspaper reporter is even luckier when he talks to a subject who has so many stories the reporter doesn’t want the interview to end. That is how it turned out when I interviewed Hal Terrell about a book he wrote about local World War Two veterans.”

TOM AXELROD–70th DIVISION, 274 BATTALION, COMPANY K
(Tom recently passed away)
“WOW! This is going to be some book! Hal has been hiding under the editorial blanket all these years. He has he touch. All the stats, the trip to Europe, his letter writing, the footwork, the years in the making looks to be paying off. From what I have seen and read it appears to be one of the best sellers.

LARRY SCHMUESER & ASSOCIATES
“You have summurized the feeling and thoughts of most Americans, my generation included. The war should, and will not ever be forgotten, and your generation will be remembered not only as the greatest but also the one that could and did. You have said far more in a few words than many of the historians have in volumes. THE OLD NATIVE WAY! This book should be required reading by all leaders in government, all teachers who teach history, at all levels of learning”.

HAL CAPRON
“I found tears rolling down my cheek while reading about Alex and Raymond. Two such different lives, but both heroes just the same. The stories you tell are very touching and should be identifiable to people from all generations and backgrounds, just like your heroes are. It is hard to imagine the fear of being in the tail of that B-17, or having to live with the challenges of Raymond. But, your book has brought me as close as I will ever know of what it was like. I only hope that if I had been dealt the same hand as they were I would have been man enough to play it as well as they did”.

FOX CLEAR CHANNEL TELEVISION
“I just finished reading one of the most moving and compelling books I have ever read. Your first chapter sent chills up my spine and brought tears to my eyes. Your descriptions of the battlefields, the walk through the cemetery at Omaha Beach, and the letter from the military doctor in San Antonio all put into perspective how insignificant and fortunate we really are. The fact that you have put all of this on paper is a tribute to you and your character. I for one, thank you for opening my eyes”.

STEVE BEATTIE, ATTORNEY AT LAW
“Great reading! You are both tough and tender, and the combination makes for a unique and inspiring narrative. When the book is actually finished, I look forward to being one of your first customers. I know my Dad would enjoy the book”.

CHARLES JACKSON
(He has a chapter in this book) “If you hadn’t written this book, I would have gone to my grave having no idea about the true greatness of the individuals in our Garfield County High School class. We were/are a pretty impressive bunch of people, and before the book, I didn’t have a clue”.

NORMA AND GENE STROMBERG
“I read the first chapter of your book to Gene as he is almost blind now. It was great! We were both quite impressed and we both had tears in our eyes. I got choked up, especially when reading the poem at the end of this chapter. Gene is eighty three years old now and your book has brought back a lot of the WWII memories to him. (Gene made the D-Day invasion at Utah Beach”.)

RESA AND JOHN WING–WING INTERNATIONAL
“Just wanted to tell you how deeply touched John and I were while reading your book. You have a rare gift of not only poetry, charisma–we all know that about you–but even more importantly of sharing your heart and vision. Good luch with your book”.

JIM NELSON–PUBLISHED AUTHOR
“”Heroes Among Us” by Hal Terrell is obviously a labor of love. So many of us who are alive today remember little or nothing of the enormous conflict of WWII. As Hal points out in his epilogue, WWII was indeed a world war, a war of almost unbelievable scope. It involved sixth-eight countries and resulted in the death of many millions of people, both military and civilian. Through his research, his persistence and his words, Hal has presented slices from the military and the personal lives of twenty-one men. These men joined the armed services, shipped out for places of terrible danger, fought, and in some cases died for their country. Most of them had not yet reached voting age. “The Greatest Generation, the enormous death toll of WWII, the terrible injuries of many of the survivors are all things that slip all too easily into the mists of time. Thanks to Hal Terrell, some of the battles, some of the horror, some of these men will not be forgotten.”

I have mixed emotions about the latest story of an elderly person who caused an accident. The entire car went into a restaurant - it wasn’t just a bump into a wall. The woman had been involved in a similar incident just a month before.

CBS Chicago reports that Illinois has some of the most stringent driving rules and that the woman had passed her most recent tests.

I don’t want to take sides here because I understand how important it is for seniors to maintain their independence. But at what price?

From Natalie d’Arbeloff, author of Interviews with God:

“MY APPLE PERFORMANCE

“I had written a short introductory speech, complete with jokes, to warm up the audience before switching on my PowerPoint show. I rehearsed it in front of the bathroom mirror, in the street, in the bus, in the taxi and I thought I had it down pat. But as soon as I got up on the platform, facing the cinema-style seats filling up with people who had actually come to hear me, I forgot it completely. Apart from one joke which could have done with better timing:

I see there are some…(pause)….mature faces here tonight. Like mine. Well, I want to tell you that anything you’ve heard about brain cells dying when you get older is a lie. They don’t die. They just get bored….(pause) And then they die. (pause). The way to keep them bouncy is to work on something you love.”

I just watched the Today Show’s interview that Lester Holt did with Bill Barnes. When senior citizen felt the pickpocket’s hand slip into his pocket, he reacted immediately by beginning to attack his attacker. Much is being made of the fact that Barnes is a former Marine and Golden Gloves boxer.

Barnes had just withdrawn money from an ATM which leads me to believe that the pickpocket had been watching for someone he considered an easy mark. He was wrong in assuming that a senior would be “easy.” Follow this link for a video of the fight.

I was happy for her when I learned that Marlys Marshall Styne took two firsts in the Illinois Press Women’s Association competition for both her book and her blog. She’s just posted that both have AGAIN won. This time on the national level! First place for her blog (Web writing, Personal) and third place for her book (Nonfiction, Biography/Autobiography). Wow! I am more than happy for her. What’s more than happy?

[The headline comes from NBC's report on Friday.] 

Any attack is tragic, expecially attacks on the elderly. But this incident [does using the word incident diminish what happened?] occured in a nursing home in suburban Maywood. I admit (with some shame) that I feel a bit vindicated. I’ve mentioned other violent encounters between seniors but the feeling persists that no one is taking me seriously.

My novel, PARK RIDGE, A Senior Center Murder, has come in for some criticism based on the assumption that seniors don’t commit crime, don’t have murderous thoughts or intentions. Even Marlys Marshall Styne asked me in her interview,

Do you believe that senior citizens, or most human beings, for that matter, harbor “deep, focused resentments” that can lead to murder?I admit I’m not really a murder mystery fan, but I guess I’ve always thought of that kind of resentment as mainly the province of disadvantaged youth, a few hardened criminals, and victims of domestic abuse. I’ve always considered those of us in the over-65 or 70 group forgiving and peaceful. Am I wrong?

It appears so.

I don’t know what happened in the game of bid whist that led Mr. Jacey, 77, to leave the card game, go to his room and come back with a .22. Even after the gun jammed and his victim, Eula Gillespie, aged 73, had run to the elevator, Jacey followed and struck her on the head. He then went outside and shot himself in the chest.

Shelley Glodowski of Midwest Book Review wrote: “Take a seemingly neutral environment and add passion and cruelty, and one has an excellent plot.” She meant it as a compliment on my novel and I appreciate it. I just hating seeing it happen in real life.

I decided to do one of Marlys’s assignments which is to use a photo as a jumping off point for memoir. The photograph that heads this post was taken by Luanne McMillen, my partner of thirty years.

Up until October, 2001, I had been the photographer in the family. I can remember the date of my release from that responsbility because I was on assignment, shooting photos of a local writing conference. On the second day I was forced to ask Luanne to take the pictures. I could no longer hold the camera steady. For the rest of the weekend I directed, and she graciously complied.

Since that time I still see shots that I’d like to have and sometimes she will take them. But for the most part she’s totally replaced me in selection as well as execution. It was she who took the photos at the Printers Row Book Fair. She’s the one who saw something of interest in the details on the building across the way.

Sure, some of them are hokey. But occasionally, make that frequently, she comes up with some stunners. Like the one above. She can even make a weed look great.

She works the same magic with the bouquets that she takes to work. One day it’s a delicate combination of lilies of the valley and grape hyacinth. The next it’s a blowsy cluster of white peonies punctuated with purple iris. 

You can see more of our gardens and Luanne’s handiwork at MSN’s live space.

In a new venture, our intrepid Chicago Writers Association professor, Marlys Marshall Styne, has come up with a blog to help seniors and boomers “Discover, Heal, Reinvent, and Share” through writing their memoirs. The site is called “Write Your Life!” and includes a variety of assignments and commentary. Marlys evens gives examples of her own work so you can get a feel for how you might approach the assignment.

Readers who wish to share what they’ve written on the blog or simply receive feedback can contact Marlys directly. Her reason for doing this:

“I hope to be able to show you how writing about our lives, whether in a private or public way, can help us to discover, to heal, to reinvent, and to share our valuable memories, lessons, and experiences with future generations.”

• Assignment 1: Observations
• Assignment 2: Photographs
• Assignment 2: What Would You Do?
  [This is one is kind of interesting - you get $5,000 with the stipulation that you can only spend it on yourself.
• Assignment 4: Mementos or Souvenirs

If you’re a mystery lover, you probably already have Poe’s Deadly Daughters blog bookmarked. If you don’t, you should!

Today’s treat is an interview of Kathy Wall by Sarah Parshall. Wall self-published her first book only to have it picked up by a small press. That led to a contract with St. Martin’s. As you might imagine she has a lot to say about all three experiences.

What seniors might not realize is that Kathy Wall is one of their own. Here’s the reason she chose to self-publish:

My decision to choose iUniverse for the first Bay Tanner, In For A Penny, was made partly as a result of my age when I began the process (just shy of 50) and partly out of ignorance. I sent out 30 queries, all at one time, and didn’t receive the final rejection letter for almost 2 years. At that rate, I figured I’d either be dead or in the ‘home’ before I ran through all my options.

I can identify - can you? 

Wall retired at 50 and began churning out the pages. These days she and her husband spend a lot of time on the road traveling to book signings and conventions. Parshall asked how publication had changed her life. Wall answered:

I think my husband says it best. Every once in a while, as we’re driving up I-95 to another event or strapping into an airplane seat headed for a conference, he’ll look over and say, “Didn’t we retire? I distinctly remember retiring. I’m sure that was us.”

Parshall also asked, “Quite a few women — and some men too — are publishing mysteries for the first time in middle age. What do you think an older writer brings to fiction that a younger person may not?”

That’s my question to you …

When I was setting up my virtual book tour, I looked at a lot of senior citizen sites. That’s how I found headrambles.com with Grandad. It’s also how I found something called GoingLikeSixty. The header of the blog has a picture of some folks white-water rafting, then a picture of a truck? with flames behind it, then a text panel which reads, “When I hit sixty, I thought I had patience. Turns out I just didn’t give a crap.”

I had no idea what the connection was between the 2 pictures and the text. But I totally agreed with the “Turns out I just don’t give a crap” sentiment. I was weary of looking for hosts for the tour and with one serendipitous email I established contact with owner of the site.

“Heck, yes!” He would be happy to have me and promptly sent off these questions.

Nope, hang on. I’m gonna make you guess at one of them. Here’s some hints:

• 1) it involves headgear
• 2) think 1956-1964 TV show
• 3) I could win a washer and dryer.

Did you guess it? Here’s the questions (#5 was the one I was hinting at):

1. 1. Other than your writing, what do people compliment you on?
2. 2. What books are your guilty pleasure?
3. 3. What is your most painful high school memory?
4. 4. Writing is hard, why are you going like sixty?
5. 5. If you were Queen for a day, what would you do? (remember Queens have no real power)

If you go to the site, you’ll see that I answered these somewhat bizarre questions — but you have to play a game of associating the answers to the questions!

The fellow who owns the GoingLikeSixty site has a number of links to senior sites and his anecdotes are unfailingly funny and poignant. I invite you to check out more than just my interview. On the other hand, here’s what he looks like - it will give you an indication of what sorts of things you might find.

There was some good-natured bantering about what he had asked. A good example is our most recent exchange. I asked if he was going to post picture of Queen for a Day, since he uses a lot of gimmicky-stuff on his site.

He sent back this photo:

I found my own photo from the tv show and tied into a wonderful personal essay about a fellow whose mother was on the show.