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Books:
Strength
in Unity So much about being Jewish in the South in the mid-20th century rings true in Driving Miss Daisy that watching WRT's production opening night brought back to me a flood of memories from my early childhood in the '60s — not being ready for Temple until my white gloves were carefully fastened with a pearl button at the wrist, gloves that either contrasted with the black patent leather shoes I wore in winter or matched the white ones I wore between Memorial Day and Labor Day; the way the neighbors gossiped about us disgusting Jews because my mother let Hattie, the black "help" who came every once in a while to help out with housework, in through the front door, and because my dad drove her home instead of making her take the bus. I remember my family's disdain for those who flaunted their money and didn't do for themselves, and I remember the day my mother was vacuuming the living room when something on TV caught her eye and she switched it off, slumping over the vacuum as if she'd been shot, bursting into sobs. "What's the matter, Mommy?" I ran to her, scared. "A very great man's been killed." That man was Martin Luther King, Jr. The connection between Jews and Blacks in the south, both victims of the common enemy of prejudice, is beautifully portrayed in the play by the relationship of Daisy (Dee Maaske), an older, well-to-do Jewish widow, and Hoke (Frederick Charles Canada), an older black widower who works hard and has managed to hold onto his dignity despite his status. The story opens in 1948, when Boolie (Ken Hof), Daisy's well-meaning if oafish son, hires Hoke to drive Daisy after she wrecks her car. At first, Daisy wants nothing to do with Hoke. Not only is he different from her kind, but he represents her aging and loss of control over her own life. Gradually, however, over the course of 25 years, 1948-1973, the relationship blossoms into deep friendship and abiding respect, culminating in the night the two attend a UJA (United Jewish Appeal, a charitable organization) benefit honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. — together. The story is told through a series of short scenes with no intermission, but it moves quickly. Maaske and Canada, both veteran pros, are incredible actors; each subtle move is carefully studied and meaningful. Hof is wonderful as Boolie, whose looser, freer style contrasts sharply with Daisy and Hoke's quiet dignity. The production values are top notch. The sound design by Doug Clark is amazing and draws the audience in right away with a stereophonic crash offstage. Later, the sound of sirens wailing is designed so that you can really picture the fire engines zooming by, and Canada's physical reaction to it is superb. The set design by Jerry S. Hooker is clever: Daisy's living room remains center stage, while Boolie's office and Daisy's car are moved upstage when in use and then back again. A scrim covers Boolie's office, to make it less noticeable than the car. This is easily one of the best productions WRT has offered. And in the current social climate, when just being brunette draws suspicious stares, I say it's absolutely relevant. Through Dec. 7, Hult.
Start
Asking Questions
ON THIS JOURNEY WE CALL OUR LIFE: LIVING THE QUESTIONS by James Hollis. Inner Circle Books, 2003. Paperback, $16. I call it serendipitous when the right book for me to read at a particular moment comes my way. So it is with Jungian writer and analyst James Hollis' latest book, On this Journey We Call Our Life. Since last spring, I've been learning to write memoir, personal narrative. As it turns out, the process is actually one of self-discovery. As I discover how to write about my life many years ago, its deeper meaning reveals itself. So when I picked up On This Journey, I was only momentarily surprised that Hollis writes about a similar process. Hollis is a lucid thinker and writer, who tackles the contemporary issues that arise in the second half of life with clarity and insight. He challenges the reader to live the life psyche wishes you to live, even though it may not necessarily be the happy, secure, entertained and adjusted life we think we want. He notes "the paradox that feeling good may be a very poor measure of the worth of one's life." He asks relevant, soul-searching questions appropriate to a time after the basics of living a stable, independent life have been met. In other words, when you have become a responsible adult. The first chapter's title and question is: "By What Truths Am I Living My Life?" To access the ideas in this chapter, Hollis suggests that when we can "relinquish our fantasy of control through understanding, and accept that we are a mystery, that some large life courses within us with its own goal, then we live closer to the heart of things." In this chapter, Hollis investigates the complexes, what Jung called "splinter psyches," that manifest their authority over us when we are "stuck" — stuck in a job, a relationship or a situation. With its historical roots deep in the unconscious, the complex resists change and growth and thwarts our best intentions. But Hollis offers practical ways to make the complex conscious and diminish its power over our lives. This is one of the goals of analysis. Each chapter asks multiple questions of the reader and suggests ways to explore them, but Hollis doesn't answer the questions. Like nearly everything worth knowing about, the process is the point. Begin examining your life deeply. Start by asking questions and searching for answers in your dreams, the patterns in your personal history. Don't expect immediate results. Just commit to the journey and go. Keep asking what matters. As Hollis notes, "We always remain a mystery to ourselves, so we have a life-long agenda for growth and development. Whoever is bored has not yet awakened to the large drama that courses within." The Eugene Friends of Jung presents a lecture by James Hollis, "The Eden Project," based on his book of the same title, at 7 pm on Thursday, Dec. 4 at the William Knight Law Center, UO. Hollis is a dynamic, interesting speaker and a down-to-earth human being.
Book Notes Nov. 26 - Jan. 1, 2005: Congratulations to Oregon Book Award winners Cai Emmons (His Mother's Son), fiction; Rita Ott Ramstad (The Play of Dark and Light), poetry; Tracy Daugherty (It Takes a Worried Man), short fiction; Barbara S. Mahoney (Dispatchers and Dictators), general nonfiction; Chris Chester (Providence of a Sparrow), creative nonfiction; Eric Kimmel (Three Samurai Cats), children's literature and Heather Vogel Frederick (The Voyage of Patience Goodpeed), young adult fiction. …National Book Award winners: Shirley Hazzard (The Great Fire), fiction; Carlos Eire (Waiting for Snow in Havana), nonfiction; C.K. Williams (The Singing), poetry; Polly Harvath (The Canning Season), young people's literature. …Oregon Book Award nominee Alan Siporin (Fire's Edge) speaks at 1 pm on 11/29 at Barnes and Noble. …Novelist, memoirist Tobias Wolff (Old School) speaks at 7:30 pm on 12/02 at Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Portland. Tickets, 505.227.2538. …Poet Clemens Starck (Traveling Incognito chapbook) reads at noon 12/04 at the OSU bookstore, Corvallis, and at 7 pm in Borders Books, Salem. …Richard D. Blackstone (Nuts and Bolts of Spirituality) speaks at 7 pm on 12/03 at Hilyard Community Center. $5. …Floyd Skloot reads from his memoir In the Shadow of Memory at 7 pm on 12/04 at the UO Bookstore. …Jungian analyst and writer James Hollis speaks at 7 pm on 12/04 at the Knight Law Center. $5 Eugene Friends of Jung, $8 non-members. …Authors and Artists Fair runs from 7 - 10 pm on 12/06 at Eugene Downtown Library. Known participants at press time include writers Kate Wilhelm, Carola Dunn, Jan Eliot, Jim Cloutier, Maryanna Vollstedt, Joyce Mixer and ceramicist Betsy Wolfson. Wine, dessert and big raffle!
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