Memoir of My Father
My father ended his life at an early age, shortly after his fifty-first birthday almost forty-seven years ago. His life was, to the world, no more important than any other, but to his family his virtues and flaws and self-destruction loomed large. The events that finally did him in--a scandal in a large, regional bank--were triggered by him in a costly act of bravery and honesty. It was a big story in the state in the last six months of 1977. I will share drafts of his story here from time to time. The Blog As I look back on my website and blog, launched in August 2021, I cannot improve on my statement in the first blogpost, “Strange Arts and Visual Delights / Kunst- und Wunderkammer": “I hope [the blogposts] will be various and curious, touching on any topics that interest me at a given moment, including poetry, regional and family history, politics, culture. I hope to be an observer of the passing (and many passed) scenes, good natured by preference but acidic when called for. You may disagree with me, but friends are those we love and respect, not those we agree with.” My Translations and Poems • French Poems by Rilke: “’Mensonge II' (Lie II),” “Rilke’s Beetles,” “Rilke’s Cornucopia,” “Rilke’s Beau Papillon,” “Rilke's 'le noyer' (walnut tree),” “Four Versions of Rilke’s Rose (XXI),” |