Culture Box
He spent a lot of his life just wanting to be a contender, wrote Michael Hirsch of Frank McCourt back in 2006. In his later years, McCourt proved that he was more than a contender. “Find what you love and do it”, he once urged a prospective teacher.
The Pulitzer Prize winning author had found what he loved and did it well, delighting thousands, capturing them in the magic of his writing. He died on July 19. He was 78.
Here, his passing scarcely garnered any attention except for a few fans of his. Like so many others of note, many here do not know of him. His books cannot be found in the limited shelves of the few bookstores. Among thousands of others, in Guyana, he is a lost author, many never heard of.
His life offers a powerful and resonating lesson of doing what you love and more-so, doing it well. How many of us here have done so? How many prospective writers, artists, creative persons — some talented, are out there dreaming their silent dreams, waiting, seeking an opportunity where their work can be exposed, critiqued and improved? How many of them sit doing something else, while inside there is a yearning for something different.
Speaking strictly in the sense of writing, there are many questions, but limited answers. How can we do it? Where do we go? What can we expect? Can anyone here make a living by writing alone? How many “real” writers do we know who still live here and make a living? An eternally hopeful question is asked: can we?
The oft-asked question of who buys books can be followed by another, more depressing “who reads anymore”. We are caught up in a world of motion, that is quick and fast and hardly anyone takes the time to savour a good book, dream a bit.
McCourt told his story with much humour and yet at the poignant moments, readers are caught up in the various emotions. His story is one of inspiration and for the few who have had the delight of reading his books, there are many more who have not heard, much less read Angela’s Ashes, ‘Tis, and Teacher Man.
And the lesson learned is that it is left to us, to make ourselves contenders. Some of us know what we want to do but are just terrified to take that leap. We hold back, aware that the clock is ticking, but still we do. “Find what you love and do it”. We should all do so, and do it well.
(thescene@stabroeknews.com)