It is hard not to think of Nebraska without thinking of its greatest writer. Here is a marvelous piece by Capote, Remembering Willa Cather . I remember seeing a stage production of O Pioneers! and being deeply moved by its raw emotions. I had read My Antonia before, and soon found myself hooked, like Capote was by the simple elegance of her prose and the way she was able to evoke so many feelings through her characters. Much of it came from the fact that she had lived those experiences herself. Her father dragged the family from Virginia to Nebraska in 1883, when it was still a young state, settling in the town of Red Cloud. named after one of the great Oglala chiefs. Red Cloud was still alive at the time, living on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, in the aftermath of the "Great Sioux Wars" of 1876-77. I don't know whether Cather took any interest in the famous chief, although it is hard to imagine not. Upon his death in 1909, he was eulogi
I got your message on facebook and tried to respond, but forgot. My caretaker will come over and re-educate me how to send you a reply. Anyhow, I forgot tht my birthday is 0n Monday. I'll be 68.
ReplyDeleteMy father was in World War I--he enlisted on Jsnuary 3, 1916 and was given a field dischargeon January 14, 1916 somewhere in the vicinity of Verdun, France about a month before the battle. He was in the Deptforth Seaforth Highlanders, "having made a serious misstatement as to his age at the time of enlistmet." "His coduct wwilst with the colors was GOOD" He was shipped back to Perth000and then went home to, waited a year and re-enlisted in the same regiment. His discharge is in excellent shape and is on very heavy paperfoled in half twice.
Great to have treasures like this one. Pretty short enlistment though.
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