She terrified me, I admit it

In 1971, I was bit ... rootless, I guess you could say. I was in college, but I really didn't know what I wanted to do. I had a miserable fall semester, then I decided to drop out. I returned home to my parents house for three agonizing months, then I got a job for the summer at a remote resort in northern Minnesota. I was hired to start work before 'the season', so I got there in early April and it was expected I would stay through summer, leaving on Labor Day.

Let me hasten to say: I had worked at resorts before, every summer, so I had a sense of what to expect. However, a resort in Northern Minnesota is not like a resort in Michigan or Wisconsin, which cater to Chicago city folks. The Gunflint Lodge was far more rustic, far more remote, and far more ... fish-oriented than I was accustomed to. I had no idea what I was getting in for.

It was a long trek to get there: a bus to the Twin Cities, then another bus to Grand Marais, then I met a taciturn and grizzled lodge employee who drove me (and supplies) over the rutted 50 miles of road. Keep in mind: this was 40 years ago -- the lodge, the road, the entire area was not as civilized as it is today. Most resort-goers came in by plane, landing on the lake. And most resort-goers were fishermen, who came in for a week, went out with a guide, and came back to the lodge the night before they returned to 'civilization.'

There was a misunderstanding (maybe) about my job duties. I thought I'd been hired to work the front desk (a job I had done in other resorts). Instead I found out I was hired to be a maid, cook's helper, and all-around gopher. I did not pack clothes for such an adventure, so the one pair of jeans I brought (stylish jeans, I might add), quickly got 'broken in'. I was housed in a barracks (where other summer workers would stay, once they arrived) and I was told to be wary of bears if I went to the outhouse in the middle of the night.

I could roll with those punches. I could handle dark woods, no television, no radio. I even learned to gut a fish. I waited tables, slung supplies, learned to pack a knapsack, and cleaned cabins. But the owner of the resort, Justine Kerfoot, was someone who totally confused me. Why would someone spend their entire life in the wilderness? She was brusque, and curt, and rough. She was also absolute master of the lodge and her word was law. I didn't like her. I saw her hard-fisted ways as being dictatorial. She seemed to intimidate every woman there (all 5 of us) and most of the men.

I lasted 2 months then I quit, hitchhiking home after the ice went out on the lake in late May. I stayed until a regular crew came in to handle the summer crowd, and I split. It wasn't until years and years later that I realized why she bothered me so much. I had never been in a situation where one's life depends on quick thinking and hard choices. Justine had grown up with that -- life in the BWCAW (Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness) was a matter of survival in the decades prior to the 1980s. They frequently were snowed in for months at a time, they had to rely on themselves for survival, and life was hard.

Now I go North every year for a vacation, not to Gunflint (that place does not hold fond memories for me), but to a spot nearby. In fact, as you read this, we are traveling to the resort for our annual getaway (so apologies if I don't reply to comments: there's spotty Internet access for me for the next few days).

I appreciate the solitude in the comfort of a nice cabin, provided for me by lodge owners (Ludlow's Resort). I appreciate the solitude and the wilderness and the work that goes into maintaining such a pristine environment. I didn't appreciate Justine then, but I think I do appreciate her now. She was a tough lady in a tough land during a tough time.

More power to her...

Are Our Heroines Women of Achievement By Jannine Gallant

We’ve featured some amazing women this month, truly strong women who’ve changed the world we live in. So, are our modern heroines modeled after these women? For the most part, I believe they are.

I grew up reading Nancy Drew. Now there was a teen with direction and determination. Did Nancy sit around waiting for Ned to solve her problems? Not a chance. She was a girl who got the job done. I bet every ten year old who read those books wanted to be just like Nancy. I know I did.

In my own teen years, back in the Dark Ages, I discovered romance. (The kind in books people! LOL) Historicals were my favorites and all the rage in the late 70’s. Admittedly, it can be hard to write about strong heroines in an era when women were supposed to be meek shadows following their men. Let’s face it; Barbara Cartland had some pretty wimpy heroines! But Kathleen Woodiwiss gave us strong women we could admire. She threw down the gauntlet, and LaVyrle Spencer picked it up. There is an author who never should have retired!

I believe the huge surge in popularity of romantic suspense novels in the 90’s, with authors like Nora Roberts leading the way, was because of the complex heroines they created. We'd had enough of the typical virginal Harlequin heroine of the 80’s and wanted women we could relate to. Women who had careers and interests beyond the men with whom they fell in love. Today, creating heroines with jobs, kids, and problems to solve while they fall for a man as imperfect as they are, is what we do best. Our modern heroine isn’t a girl wringing her hands and moaning over her hard luck. She’s a woman taking control of the situation and finding solutions.

The heroine of my first published novel, Victim of Desire, is Rachel Carpenter. Ex-soap star, bookstore owner, divorced mother of three with a psychotic stalker on her trail. Maybe most of us don’t have an unbalanced fan following us around (at least not yet LOL,) but I bet you can relate to the frustrations of a mom whose fourteen-year-old daughter dyes her hair pink and gets a tattoo, a woman so busy prioritizing her children and her business she doesn’t have time to date. The mark of a true Woman of Achievement is in how she handles herself and her problems. I think Rachel qualifies!

Are your heroines Women of Achievement? Let’s hear about them.

To purchase Victim of Desire and my other books, find buy links on my website at www.JannineGallant.com.

Dr. Jane Goodall

Even at an early age Jane Goodall loved nature. In 1957 she went to Africa for the first time. There she met Louis S. B. Leakey, famous archaeologist and paleontologist. Impressed with her interest and knowledge, he hired her as an assistant then asked her to study a group of chimpanzees in Tanzania with the hope of learning more about our own evolutionary past.

Her first weeks at Gombe were frustrating. The chimpanzees shied away from her, so she had to study them from a peak where she could observe what they did with her binoculars. Her notes revealed many things formerly unknown about chimps. For example, it was thought that chimps were vegetarians. Goodall saw them hunting and eating small mammals. It was also thought that what separated humans from chimps was the use of tools. Goodall, however, witnessed a chimp she named David Graybeard using a stick, stripped of its leaves, to probe a termite mound. When she reported this information to Leakey, he wrote, “Now we must redefine ‘tool,’ redefine ‘man’ or accept chimpanzees as humans,” emphasizing the importance of Goodall’s discovery.

Goodall made many observations in Gombe that were published in National Geographic, with captivating photos by filmmaker/photographer Hugo van Lawick. As the level of support for the Gombe study increased, the pair was able to build a permanent camp with chimp-proof buildings and to hire more researchers. The Gombe Stream Research Center was born.

Chimpanzees, Goodall found, were emotional creatures, exhibiting both altruistic and violent behaviors similar to humans. She continued to study chimps at Gombe even as she traveled worldwide promoting conservation. Her book, The Chimpanzees of Gombe: Patterns of Behavior, was published in 1986 and documents her 25 years worth of research.

Goodall started as a scientist and made the shift to activist. Today, she is on the road more than 300 days a year. She lectures, meets with government officials, makes television appearances, does interviews, and raises money for conservation causes. Reaching out to young people is of particular interest to Goodall. She views them as pivotal to protecting the planet. She developed a special program, Roots & Shoots, to get young people involved in global issues and to empower them.

Jane Goodall is a true example of a woman of achievement. She has made a difference in the lives of many, both human and chimp. Her energy is contagious. Her message powerful. We can learn a great deal from someone with her spirit.

I wrote my character, Dr. Nivia Charu, in LAZULI MOON while reading biographies of Dr. Jane Goodall. Although, Nivia is more interested in artifacts than animals, her passion was modeled after Dr. Goodall.

Blurb:

Three people search for the legendary Lazuli Moon in the Valdivian Rainforest.
Two of them will find a treasure they never expected.
One won’t live to see another day.

Archaeologist and professor Dr. Nivia Charu can’t let the Lazuli Moon remain hidden forever. With her teaching position threatened and no funds for an expedition, Nivia fears the blue diamond fabled to have healing powers will never be unearthed.

Physician Dr. Benjamin Forrester wants to cure his uncle’s cancer. His attempts at manufacturing a remedy, however, have failed. Desperate and out of options, Ben needs a miracle, and Nivia may just hold the key.

Up against a crazed boat captain and ancient curses, Ben and Nivia join forces to seek the Lazuli Moon. What waits for them in the depths of the rainforest will either make them famous or kill them.

Download LAZULI MOON today!

Chris

www.christinedepetrillo.weebly.com

A spunky Iowa girl: Carrie Chapman Catt (by J L Wilson)

I thought I'd spotlight an Iowa girl for my first post this month, and a Minnesota girl for my last post. Iowa is my new home (and my old home: I grew up here), and Minnesota was my adopted home for 20 years. I'll talk about Justine Kerfoot in my last post, a woman who awed me when I met her and who remains a legend of the Gunflint Trail.

But for now, I'll talk about Carrie Chapman Catt. Like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, CCC was an advocate of equal rights for women and the ratification of the 19th Amendment. I did a lot of research about CCC for a time travel book that I plan to write (whenever I get the time: how ironic!)

CCC was fascinating to me because she did  a lot of campaigning -- hands on campaigning, taking a train "Out West" on a propaganda tour. It's that train ride/tour that figures heavily in my book (again: once I get the time to write it). She also helped organize the International Woman Suffrage Alliance, she founded the League of Women Voters, worked on committees that examined issues about child labor.

What motivated a girl in the 1880s to go to college, working her way through school by washing dishes and teaching? She was the only woman in her graduating class, a rare accomplishment. She became the first woman in the nation to be appointed a superintendent of schools. She later traveled to San Francisco and became the city's first female newspaper reporter, then she returned to Iowa to be a professional writer and lecturer.

When I think of women like this, who bucked convention and followed their hearts (and consciences), it's amazing to me. Are today's young women up to the challenges of the future? I'm not sure. But I suppose my parents (who endured World War II) had the same reservations about my generation, the Baby Boomers. Were we up to the challenge of the future?

I'm not sure ... I suppose only time will tell (there it is again, that pesky reference to 'time')

Maya Angelou: Global Renaissance Woman -- Vonnie Davis

Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope. -- Maya Angelou 

Maya Angelou is one of the most renowned and influential female voices of our time. Hailed as a global renaissance woman, Dr. Angelou is a celebrated poet, novelist, educator, dramatist, producer, actress, historian, filmmaker and civil rights activist.

She was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1928 and raised by her grandmother in Arkansas. During her young years, Angelou experienced the brutality of racial discrimination, but she also absorbed the unshakable faith and values of traditional African-American family, community, and culture.

As a teenager, her love for the arts won her a scholarship to study dance and drama at San Francisco's Labor School. At the age of fourteen, she dropped out to become San Francisco/s first African-American female cable car conductor. She later finished high school, giving birth to her son a few weeks after graduation. As a young single mother, she supported her son by working as a waitress and cook, however her passion for music, dance, performance and poetry would soon take center stage.

I believe that every person is born with talent.-- Maya Angelou

In 1954 and 1955, Dr. Angelou toured Europe with a production of the opera Porgy and Bess. She studied modern dance and later danced on television variety shows and, in 1957, recorded her first album, Calypso Lady. In 1958, she moved to New York, where she joined the Harlem Writers Guild, acted in the historic Off-Broadway production of Jean Genet's The Blacks and wrote and performed Cabaret for Freedom.

In 1960, Dr. Angelou moved to Cairo, Egypt where she served as editor of the English language weekly The Arab Observer. The next year, she moved to Ghana where she taught at the University of Ghana's School of Music and Drama, worked as feature editor for The African Review and wrote for The Ghanaian Times.

I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. -- Maya Angelou



During her years abroad, Dr. Angelou read and studied voraciously, mastering French, Spanish, Italian, Arabic and the West African language Fanti. Soon after her return to the United States, she became the Northern Coordinator for the Southern Christian Leadership conference. After King's assassination, with the encouragement of her friend, James Baldwin, she began work on the book that would become I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

The list of her published verse, non-fiction and fiction now includes more than thirty bestselling titles. A trailblazer in film and television, Dr. Angelou wrote the screenplay and composed the score for the 1072 film, Greorgia, Georgia. Her script, the first by an African American woman ever to be filmed was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

Dr. Angelou has received over thirty honorary degrees and is Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University. She's been a shining example to many women, no matter our race.

How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes! -- Maya Angelou

Back in the nineties, I was a non-traditional college student at Penn State. One day, I was in the library showing a young student how to do research when the student, Erin, spied books by Angelou. "Oh, I love Maya's poetry," she oozed. When I told her I'd never heard any of her verse, Erin pulled a book from the shelf and opened it to the index. "Here, I'll share my favorite poem." Suddenly she was the teacher.

She flipped through the book until she found the page she sought. "My mother read this poem to me almost every night. It's my ultimate favorite: Phenominal Woman." Then she began reading it to me in a lively jazzbeat, with a cadence I'll never forget.

                "I walk into a room

Just as cool as you please,

And to a man,

The fellows stand or

Fall down on their knees.

Then they swarm around me,

A hive of honey bees.

I say,

It’s the fire in my eyes,

And the flash of my teeth,

The swing in my waist,

And the joy in my feet.

I’m a woman

Phenomenally.

Phenomenal woman,

That’s me.

Men themselves have wondered

What they see in me.

They try so much

But they can’t touch

My inner mystery.

When I try to show them,

They say they still can’t see.

I say,

It’s in the arch of my back,

The sun of my smile,

The ride of my breasts,

The grace of my style.

I’m a woman

Phenomenally.

Phenomenal woman,

That’s me.

Now you understand

Just why my head’s not bowed.

I don’t shout or jump about

Or have to talk real loud.

When you see me passing,

It ought to make you proud.

I say,

It’s in the click of my heels,

The bend of my hair,

the palm of my hand,

The need for my care.

’Cause I’m a woman

Phenomenally.

Phenomenal woman,

That’s me."

To all you phenomenal women who've stopped at Roses of Prose today--and ALL of our blog readers are phenomenal women, every one--remember, we were all meant to shine. Be a strong woman. Be a "she-ro." Be phenomenal!

Women of Achievement: Louisa May Alcott

LITTLE WOMEN

One of the most beloved books of my youth, Little Women, was written by Louisa May Alcott. The story chronicled the lives of four sisters. Louisa May Alcott pulled me into their world. Blessed with a vivid imagination and the drive to shine, Ms Alcott wanted to be famous from an early age.

When writing a story I love to create women characters that are strong, willful, stubborn, loyal…a woman just like Louisa May Alcott. The irony of writing about strong willful women in historicals is that it was difficult for women with these characteristics in the past. Women were looked down upon during this time if opinionated and independent. 

Although I’m not certain whether it was a conscious choice for Louisa to be different, I’m confident she chose to be herself. Perhaps it was being one of four sisters that drove her. Perhaps it was growing up in poverty. Perhaps it was her ambition. Whatever the reason, I believe because of her strength and determination she was able to achieve much in her life, leaving behind a legacy to be admired.

Her father might not have provided well for the material needs of his family, he did have connections. The Alcotts were within the inner circle of the Transcendentalist movement. Louisa’s father, Bronson, was best friends to Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. The influence of these men on her writing is undeniable, but writing wasn’t Louisa’s first plan to become rich and famous.

Louisa wanted to become an actress. Knowing that Little Women was based loosely on her on life and ‘Jo’ fashioned on herself, this information isn’t shocking. It is also not shocking to discover that her fame and fortune came from writing. What I found most fascinating and admirable was Louisa herself.

Louisa May Alcott was a woman of action and much more than an author. Louisa was a staunch abolitionist and supported racial equality. Saying this, one needs to remember the times Louisa grew up in. Abolitionists weren’t popular anywhere. Remember Louisa was raised outside of Boston, Massachusetts. Even there abolitionists were only tolerated. Most people of the era, even those who opposed slavery, still considered themselves above slaves even if they were free. Louisa’s family was part of the Underground Railroad. At times, her family hid runaway slaves in their home.

When the Civil War broke out, Louisa served as a nurse in the army. She tended patients in Washington. She assisted patients even holding the hands of soldiers dying from long and painful deaths. Her nursing these soldiers cost her her own health. She contracted typhoid fever and was treated for it with calomel (a mercury derivative) which hurt her physically and affected her for the rest of her life.

After she made her fame and fortune, Louisa set up a home for orphaned newsboys and told stories to the needy. She campaigned for women’s suffrage. She vowed when she was younger to be rich, and famous, and happy before I die. She fulfilled that vow and took on her family’s financial burden.

Louisa never married although there are rumors of a romance with a young man called “Laddie” when she was in Europe. We will never know for certain because she took that part out of her journal. One of Louisa’s friend Julian Hawthorne, Nathaniel Hawthorne’s son, said about Louisa. “Did she ever have a love affair? We never knew; yet how could a nature so imaginative, romantic and passionate escape it?”

Because Louisa took on the financial responsibility for her family, marrying would have caused a dilemma for her. A woman at that time would have become a shadow of her husband with no economic or legal identity. Did she sacrifice herself for her family? That I can’t answer.

Louisa’s fortune was set with the publication of Little Women when she was 35. She had finally achieved the fame and fortune she had sought.

She died twenty years later and is buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery by her parents. It is also the resting place of other notables such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Elizabeth Alcott.

She is renowned for her writings, but she was much more than an author. She was a woman of action. One to be long admired for her achievements.

You will find my next release, The Judas Kiss, out this coming January with Whiskey Creek Press. A historical romance. I’m excited because it’s the first in the Tides of Charleston series. You will find my other books, Dream Walker and Patriot Secrets, at most ebook stores. Follow me on Facebook- Novel Works is my fan page where I recommend books, authors, blogs… I’m also on Twitter @jhines340.

Who do you want to be when you grow up?

Women of Achievement is our theme this month. I sat down to think about women I admire, and I couldn’t get past my grandma. Lillian Watson is 95 years old, an achievement in itself! But what makes her remarkable isn’t her age, but the way she attacks life with both grace and tenacity.

Lillian was born in 1915 in Washington State to a working class family. She was very bright and valued education, entering college at the age of 16 and working for her room and board. She graduated a three year course with a teaching credential and married my grandfather in 1937. Over the years, my grandma raised my mom, survived the loss of her second daughter, taught school, and spent many years as a farmer’s wife. The work involved in that alone was a full time job!

She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in 1953, the first of our family to do so. In 1964 she was chosen by the California Classroom Teacher’s Association to represent California at a conference in Washington DC. What is remarkable about my grandma is her effect on people. Several of her students (she taught 1st grade) stayed in touch with her for many years. She made a lasting impression on their lives.

Lately her health has been shaky, and she’s been in and out of the hospital a few times. The nurses greet her with hugs. Grandma is a trooper. She grits her teeth and fights back. Though getting around is painful, she powers through her therapy each and every time. At 95, she maintains her independence, living alone in an apartment not far from my mom, refusing to give in and move to “one of those homes.”

Lillian is still as bright as ever, beating us all in cards, reading voraciously, and earning the love and respect of everyone with whom she comes in contact. When I’m 95, I want to be just like my grandma! Is there someone special in your family you admire? Let’s hear about them!

For more information on me and my books, check my website at www.janninegallant.com. My grandma is my biggest supporter, mailing copies of my book to everyone she knows, whether they want them or not. One of these days I may have to write her story!