The difference between Christopher Guerin and myself is that he went on from Eudora's rejection to become a symphony orchestra manager. My next two jobs, after the very same loss (we were at the same awards dinner, and both of us were expecting to win) were as a door-to-door Bible salesman and a longshoreman. Ultimately I was just as back-handedly grateful to Ms. Welty as Chris was, and for similar reasons, but it took me a couple of years!
I cannot offer much of substance, though I offer four things: (1) Guerin says: "I’d have ended up as a scholar gypsy for years, maybe, finally, landing a tenure track job in a community college." And I say, "Ouch!" (2) Eudora Welty is one of the reasons I became a university instructor of literature. When I read Welty's stories, I knew I had discovered something sublime. I knew that I cannot hope to rival her writing abilities, so I opted instead to venture into academic where I continue to share the appreciation of good writing. (3) I think that I'm glad that I missed seeing Ms. Welty's film appearance. (4) Now, I think I'll pull down my copies of Welty's stories and begin savoring them once again.
The difference between Christopher Guerin and myself is that he went on from Eudora's rejection to become a symphony orchestra manager. My next two jobs, after the very same loss (we were at the same awards dinner, and both of us were expecting to win) were as a door-to-door Bible salesman and a longshoreman. Ultimately I was just as back-handedly grateful to Ms. Welty as Chris was, and for similar reasons, but it took me a couple of years!
ReplyDeleteI cannot offer much of substance, though I offer four things:
ReplyDelete(1) Guerin says: "I’d have ended up as a scholar gypsy for years, maybe, finally, landing a tenure track job in a community college." And I say, "Ouch!"
(2) Eudora Welty is one of the reasons I became a university instructor of literature. When I read Welty's stories, I knew I had discovered something sublime. I knew that I cannot hope to rival her writing abilities, so I opted instead to venture into academic where I continue to share the appreciation of good writing.
(3) I think that I'm glad that I missed seeing Ms. Welty's film appearance.
(4) Now, I think I'll pull down my copies of Welty's stories and begin savoring them once again.