Spreading The Magic

Sitting alone during the wee hours in Casa Claire, typing away at the keyboards during my morning blogs, sometimes feels like its placing a message in a bottle and tossing it off into the ocean, not knowing where the message will land.

All I can hope for is that whomever reads what I write, comes away with a positive experience.

One such person was Josh Redmyer, who I met at Mike O’Shays the day I was enshrining Finding Jimmy Moran on the MOS Literary Bookshelf and snapping a marketing photo of the real Kyle Dooley, whose character is the bartender in the Hell’s Kitchen section of FJM. That marketing photo was then published by Kerry F. Freeman, a brilliant young writer – whose debut novel, Sedona, is off the hook –

Of course, as with all of the interesting moments in my life, I blogged about meeting Josh.

https://thewisenovelist.com/finding-jimmy-moran-joins-the-mos-literary-bookshelf-welcome-joshua-redmyer/

As with many people who pass through my life, it is a brief interaction. We are all traveling in our own streams and must go where our currents take us. However, all contacts leave some indelible impression.

Sadly, a couple of years after meeting Josh, I learned from Josh’s mother, Veronica, that he had passed.

https://thewisenovelist.com/rip-joshua-redmyer-a-fine-young-man/

And over time, because of that connection through Josh, Veronica became a reader of The Claire Saga.

https://thewisenovelist.com/dear-veronica/

Well, I hadn’t heard from Veronica in a while, so I assumed her day-to-day life had recaptured her attention and carried her back into the here and now and into the raging current of her life’s stream, The Claire Saga now just a pleasant memory.

The last contact I had from Veronica, she told me she had reached Book 4 in TCS, the book that introduced me to her son Josh, FJM.

Well, as a wonderful surprise, this morning Veronica again reached out to update me on her literary journey through TCS.

As Veronica is such an eloquent writer, I will just publish the email as presented.

“Tom,

I finished reading/listening to FJM a couple of weeks ago. It was bittersweet since that ended my journey that began with Josh meeting you and sharing with me what that meant to him. Thank you for letting me take the whole trip to the FMJ book.

My audible account gave me credits from getting the Claire trilogy and I already downloaded Where the Ley Lines Meet. August 5 is the anniversary of when Joshua’s ashes were laid to rest at Camp Pendleton in CA where he did his Marine training with the Alpha Raiders. He is there on the top of a mountain with his Marine Brothers that also moved on from this life.

I found a veteran’s memorial park here in Jefferson, KY 10 minutes from my apartment. I went there last week and it was very moving to me. The entrance honored all of the branches of the military and had quotes and notes from all of them. One of the notes on the memorial wall was a letter from a son to his mother. It was signed Josh. I noticed that there was a creek or river in the park with benches. I stopped at that point to compose myself from the tears and emotions.

Since then, I decided that on August 5, I would go back. I will visit the rest of the memorials, go down to the water, sit on a bench there to begin my journey with your next book. Again, bittersweet. 

You said Josh is a part of your world and I happened to join it. From my perspective, you and your writings are now a part of my world and story.

Thank you for helping me find peace to move on.

Veronica”

Veronica, if you are reading this, I am touched and honored by your words. I hope you will enjoy WTLLM. I’m sure Josh will be listening along with you as you complete that voyage. I look forward to hearing from you when you turn that last(?) page.

So you never know the impact your words and conduct may have on people whom you do not yet know – and who are captured by the ideal –

“That strangers are friends that we some day may meet[.]“

Edgar Guest, “Faith” 1915

Interestingly enough, I have seen the reach of my grans words and conduct expand in equally mystical and magical ways since arriving here at Casa Claire.

Yesterday, at twilight, my beautiful Aussie DIL, Georgie, spotted a small blonde creature scale the front fence and scurry along past the Gnomes to The Old Man, where that tiny creature left a note at the ever expanding Faerie Village and then sprinted away and back over the fence with preternatural speed and agility.

It seems that word of the Faeries generosity is spreading among the local children.

“Beware the law of unintended consequences, Jimmy Moran.” Aldor, An Alien Appeal, p. 132.

Well, Monday is behind us and Tuesday peeks cheerfully over the horizon.

You fine, five readers get that last cuppa in you and become a productive citizen these next few days so that you will have your Friday all to yourself for planning and escaping into another wonderful summer weekend. BBQs, pools, lakes, oceans and books to read.

Speaking of books, I hope that my fine, five readers – who are members of Amazon Prime – have downloaded and began reading their free kindle copy of The Wise Ass. I mean, jeez people, it’s FREE.

Me, I have some kitties to cuddle and my rounds to make.

Then some legal work.

But no matter what else we get up to today – engage that stranger who may be your next best friend – and let’s make today a great one.