Troy Davis, Picking Cotton, and memoir writing

Posted on September 22, 2011 by moonbridgebooks

Troy Davis was executed last night based on eye witness accounts of him murdering an off-duty policeman working as an unarmed security guard. Officer Mark MacPhail was shot to death protecting a homeless man, leaving behind a wife and two babies. The killer, identified by nine witnesses, was Troy Davis. Mr. Davis, however, insisted he was innocent and his lawyers appealed, but to naught. No gun was ever found, no physical evidence linked Davis to the crime. Only the eye witnesses.

Now Mr. Davis was no innocent; he was convicted of another crime that happened days before the MacPhail murder. That crime involved bullet casings that matched up with those found at the MacPhail murder scene. Mr. Davis also hung out with minor criminals in a bad neighborhood of drug dealers and addicts. But, did he actually kill Officer MacPhail?

Per a Reuters article, “Since Davis’s conviction, seven of nine witnesses have changed or recanted their testimony, some have said they were coerced by police to testify against him and some say another man committed the crime.” A number of people not called to the witness stand are saying Sylvester “Red” Coles did it and let Davis take the fall. But, two of the original witnesses were still sure they saw Ray Davis shoot Officer MacPhail. Is their eye-witness testimony alone enough to justify executing a man?

Many memoir writers know the truth is hard to find. When I tell stories of my childhood, sometimes my sister doesn’t know what I am talking about, even though she was there in the stories. Sometimes I don’t know what she’s talking about. Sometimes we help each other fill in gaps. Now try pinning down details of settings and the timing of events and what strangers were around. Try pinning down details when you’re watching something bad happen across a parking lot and it’s getting dark and you’re scared. Jennifer Thompson-Canino knows all about that.

Jennifer Thompson was raped by Ronald Cotton. She picked him out of a line-up. He went to jail. Then DNA evidence found he was the wrong man and he was freed. After eleven years. Jennifer Thompson was positive she had the right man. What happened? In 2009 her memoir with Ronald Cotton was published: Picking Cotton: Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemption. I guess the Georgia State and the U.S. Supreme Court justices haven’t read it.

Linda Austin
“Cherry Blossoms in Twilight”
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com

Posted in memories | Tagged | 5 Comments

A lost memoir: The Music Man

Posted on September 15, 2011 by moonbridgebooks

I have the honor of knowing “The Music Man,” one of two original music men famous here for teaching music and having the best music stores around. My friend had a hard early life, as many folks born in the 1920s did, but he was able to start his music store in the 1950s and became well known for teaching music, including jazz, and for supporting his local community and school district with volunteer work as well as with excellent service for the school’s music programs. When that school district created an alumni association hall of fame, my friend was the first inductee. I found he was a leader behind the creation of a book written on the history of his community and school district, so now I’m not so surprised he hired a journalist to write down his own history in a memoir of his journey from the Depression era to prominent (and well-loved) community figure. Unfortunately, he did this after his only child got power of attorney and sent him to a nursing home. He was not happy.

There are always two sides to a story and his daughter and spouse seem to be good community citizens and running the store well. The store still retains my friend’s name for continuity’s sake, but the website makes no mention of the history of the store and the man, which I find a little sad, but you know there’s probably animosity there. And you know there was animosity written into the memoir. The only child got ahold of the memoir and refused to let him publish it. He then wanted to clean it up, to make the ending more even-handed, but no go. So the story of his life is a goner. This city, his community will lose a little of its history when he passes on. But at least there is that town history book he helped create.

The moral of this post is don’t wait to write your memoir until you’ve been put into a nursing home and had all your decision-making rights taken away. Or you’ve forgotten half your story. Write your story – your way – now. And yes, the other message is to not put your unabashed anger against someone into your memoir. No. No. No. (See Boyd Lemon: Daring to dig deep to write a divorce memoir.)

Disclaimer: I have not seen my friend’s writings, this post is the truth as he knows it (and he is quite lucid) and from what I found in researching.

Linda Austin
“Cherry Blossoms in Twilight”
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com
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Full Moon Viewing (Tsukimi): party with dango under the harvest moon

Posted on September 12, 2011 by moonbridgebooks

The full harvest moon of autumn is rising huge over the horizon these days. Last night, September 11 in the U.S., was technically the full moon, but the nights just before and after are filled with moonlight, too. Japan and other Asian nations (China, Taiwan, Vietnam) celebrate this harvest moon, which usually falls in mid-September, but every few years in October. Of course, other cultures celebrate the harvest moon, but Japan and China in particular enjoy the ethereal and artistic quality of the moon, especially the full moon. They eat special celebratory foods and sit together outside admiring the beauty of the big moon. The Chinese see a lady in the moon, the Japanese see a rabbit pounding mochi rice cakes (actually, gooey rice patties).

Last night I made the traditional Japanese “dango” rice balls for the first time ever and served them with mitarashi, a sweetened and thickened soy sauce. The dango are used as decoration also, as are other round (full-moon-shaped) foods such as oranges. The Japanese also use 5 or 7 stems (lucky numbers) of grass seedheads – pampas grass is a favorite — and perhaps some fall flowers to complete the table arrangement. They enjoy eating and drinking sake, having a party under the lovely full moon. Of course, the full moon is also romantic, so lovers may enjoy strolling arm-in-arm through the moonlight. My youngest daughter and I sat outside on the front porch eating dango-on-a-stick, dipped in sauce.

I probably would never have known about this celebration had my mother not told me the story. I wrote it into her memoir, Cherry Blossoms in Twilight, so our family would not forget. My Japanese friends here in the Midwest do not celebrate Moon Viewing, although most know about it from their childhood. I am grateful to my mother for making my life richer with her stories.

Dango*

1 cup rice flour
1/2 cup mochiko (sweet, or glutinous rice flour)

Add just enough hot (but not boiling) water to make a dough, stirring with a fork. Knead with rice-floured hands until smooth. Add more water or rice flour as needed. Make into small balls (1-inch diameter). Place in a pot of boiling water with a pinch of salt in it. When the dango rise to the top, cook a few minutes longer. Remove dango and plunge into a cold water bath. Skewer 3 or more per bamboo stick. Put a skewer on a pretty plate and spoon mitarashi sauce over. (Plain soy sauce can be used instead, just as for mochi rice cakes.)

*This is a small recipe. Dango feature in other Japanese festivals, and are often colored or flavored, but Tsukimi dango are made white as the moon.

Mitarashi

1/2 cup water
1/4 cup sugar (or slightly less to taste) mixed with 1 Tbsp corn or potato starch
1/8 cup soy sauce
1 Tbsp mirin

Simmer in a saucepan until sugar dissolves and sauce thickens. Remove from heat.

Linda Austin
“Cherry Blossoms in Twilight”
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com

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