On Memorial Day, I’ll be performing songs at Kiroli Park for the Blue Star Mothers, their friends and family.  I’m working on my song list now and I hope the ones I choose will inspire and comfort the families who attend. The Blue Star Mothers are mothers of military service men and women. You can read more of this organization here:

Not surprisingly, the custom of Memorial Day may have began in the South, during the War Between the States. An article at a Memorial Day site says: Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s service. There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day. There is also evidence that organized women’s groups in the South were decorating graves before the end of the Civil War: a hymn published in 1867, “Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping” by Nella L. Sweet carried the dedication “To The Ladies of the South who are Decorating the Graves of the Confederate Dead” (Source: Duke University’s Historic American Sheet Music, 1850-1920).  However, the author (David Merchant?) later says, “Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I (when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war). It is now celebrated in almost every State on the last Monday in May (passed by Congress with the National Holiday Act of 1971 (P.L. 90 – 363) to ensure a three day weekend for Federal holidays), though several southern states have an additional separate day for honoring the Confederate war dead: January 19 in Texas, April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in South Carolina; and June 3 (Jefferson Davis’ birthday) in Louisiana and Tennessee.”

You can read about the history and meaning of Memorial Day here:

About Confederate soldier graves: In addition to the “pits” where multiple slain soldiers were buried together in large numbers, the most common markers I’ve seen are one of these two designs–a Maltese Cross and the pointed slab (The legend is that these were designed so Yankee soldiers wouldn’t sit on them).

Tonight, I’m in my lodging in Lafayette. In an earlier post, I had made mention to Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns. As good as that read was, I enjoyed the Kite Runner far more. I finished it tonight. As Isabel Allende said of Kite Runner, this is “one of those unforgettable stories that stays with you for years.” The novel will teach you the beauty and uniqueness of the Afghan culture. The novel’s themes that relate to guilt, friendship, betrayal, the ghosts and power of memory, family, and history will stir, perhaps even break your heart. If you’ve ever lived with a secret sin, with a tortured conscience, you will weep. If you’ve ever wondered how bad life is under the Taliban and how right we in the West are to resist them, this novel will answer those asked and unasked questions in a bone and soul-jarring manner.

Here are some lines that stood out to me:

“[I]t’s wrong what they say about the past, I’ve learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out” (1).

“It may be unfair, but what happens in a few days, some even a single day, can change the course of a whole lifetime . . .” (142).

“I wondered if that was how forgiveness budded, not with the fanfare of epiphany, but with pain gathering its things, packing up, and slipping away unannounced in the middle of the night” (359).

The narrator says that Sohrab’s silence was “the silence of one who has taken cover in a dark place . . . He walked like he was afraid to leave behind footprints. He moved as if not to stir the air around him” (361).

The novel Kite Runner is a New York Times Bestseller and my edition (Riverhead Books) comes with study questions. I’d have to say this is one of the better reads of my life.

 Ah, so this is what the life of a writer is, at least one with limited resources who is trying to establish himself.  It is very busy and tiring. I spent the night Thursday with friends in Alexandria, Louisiana, then up at 4:00 a.m. to drive on to Lake Charles. I was at Le Bleau Elementary all day Friday, and I must say that this program and presentation was a wonderful experience for me.  The students were absolutely wonderful, the teachers far above average, and Adrienne Oakley, the librarian in the photo with me below, a fantastic lady.  I do hope I can come back to this school, as I loved these kids and beautiful teachers so much.

From Lake Charles, I drove to Baton Rouge on Friday, where I was to meet my fellow musician, Tom McCandlish. We were guests of the Scottish Society there, and had a late night at the society’s house on Airline.  Thanks to Mark and Tasha Ferguson for their hospitality this past weekend.  They are generous, and they love things and people Scottish with all their heart.  Below is my friend Tom, and though he is very Scottish, he is reminding us of how multicultural he can be!  I’ve forgotten when and where I took this photo this weekend! Ahem . . .

Saturday morning, Tom woke me up much earlier than I wanted, and we went to the Swamp Celts Festival in Gonzalez, Louisiana.  We had a great day and I certainly will post more photos of this event in the near future.  I made two story-telling presentations for the festival, and I also had a booth where I signed and sold my books.  The festival staff was fantastic and with their help I was able to have a very successful day of signing and selling books.  I am indebted to all the festival staff there, and with all my heart I thank them for allowing me to read some of my writing and have  a table there. Below is a photo of Shannon, one of the festival workers I met last year and am in debt to. We decided that our picture together at this event would be an annual tradition, so here is our second photo together.

I’ll certainly have more to say of this weekend in the future. Mark this link and check it in the near future for more photos of this wonderful festival.  http://swampcelts.com/ 

This week, I’m going to the Texas Library Association conference in Dallas. This too will be a long week, but I’ll make as many posts as I can.

I’ve been remiss in my blog duties, but I’ve been buried in book editing for days. I’ll be in Lake Charles at a school Friday, and performing and signing books at the Swamp Celts Festival in Baton Rouge on Saturday. In other words, I’ll be swamped with work.

Here is something I put together for TGIF about some little known Texans during the War Between the States.

Some Texans Worth Remembering . . .

In More Generals in Gray by Bruce Allardice, printed by LSU Press, I found the names of several Texans who served the Confederacy during the War Between the States. Here are a few of the men mentioned in the appendix of this book and a short description of each man:

Frederic Samuel Bass, (1829-1897) was a prewar teacher in Marshall Texas. As a colonel, the notes said he commanded Hood’s Texas Brigade near the end of the war.

August Buchel (1811-1864) was a colonel of the 1st Texas Cavalry, a native of Germany, and a soldier of fortune. He was promoted to Brigadier General just before he was killed at the battle of Mansfield.

Thomas Jefferson Chambers was a colonel of the 14th Texas and was briefly governor of Texas in 1861 and promoted to general late in the war. He too resided in Marshall, Texas.

George M. Flournoy (1832-1889) was a colonel of the 16th Texas Infantry and prewar attorney general of Texas.

William Harrison Hamman (1830-1918) was a Virginia-born Texas lawyer of Robertson Texas.  He was appointed brigadier general of Texas state troops in December, 1864.

David Bell Martin (1830-1892) was a brigadier general of the 10th Brigade of the Texas Militia and later commandant of conscripts in Texas. Before the war he worked as a merchant in Cherokee County.

Hugh McLeod (1814-1862) was a West Point graduate and colonel of the 1st Texas Infantry. A New York-born Galveston resident, McLeod had been Texas’ secretary of war.

The more I study Texas history, the more fascinated I am.  If you’ve heard of these men or are related to them, drop me a note at rickeyp@bayou.com

Book Signing and Program News:

Tomorrow (Monday) morning at 8:00 a.m., I’ll be interviewed at The Cross, KBMQ/KLIC  in Monroe, Louisiana.  The subject will be writing and discussion of my children’s book, Jim Limber Davis: A Black Orphan in the Confederate White House.

Tuesday and Wednesday, April 1-2, I’ll be at the junior high in Hallsville, TX, presenting my Jim Limber and Civil War Program.

In addition, I’ve been asked to perform for the children at the Swamp Celts Festival in Baton Rouge, April 12.  I’ll also have a booth to sign my books at.   You  can learn more about this fantastic Celtic festival here, http://www.swampcelts.com/ 

Excitement is building for my Scottish Alphabet book which we hope to have in print by August-September.  I hope to begin preselling and making presentations for the book soon. If you would like to preorder a signed and discounted copy, drop me a note and we’ll discuss it. rickeyp@bayou.com

A Wonderful Civil War Song: On Rosemary Poole-Carter’s website, I found a beautiful arrangement of a song, “Somebody’s Darling.” If you like Civil War music, be sure and check it out. (Wava Everton, vocals; Lesley Modisette, guitar) Rosemary is the talented author of Women of Magdalene. http://www.poole-carter.info/images/Wava%20Everton%20-%20Somebodys%20Darling.mp3

After listening to The Tin Roof Blowdown on audio CD by James Lee Burke, I am more impressed than ever with Burke’s writing.  His writing has fascinated me for some years now. Since first lines in writing a novel are so important, I decided to take a look at the first lines of some of the Dave Robicheaux novels:

In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead “The sky had gone black at sunset, and the storm had churned inland from the Gulf and drenched New Iberia and littered East Main with leaves and tree branches from the long canopy of oaks that covered the street from the old brick post office to the drawbridge over Bayou Teche at the edge of town.”

Jolie Blon’s Bounce “Growing up during the 1940s in New Iberia, down on the Gulf Coast, I never doubted how the world worked.”

A Stained White Radiance “I had known the Sonnier family all my life.”

Black Cherry Blues ” Her hair is curly and gold on the pillow, her skin white in the heat lightning that trembles beyond the pecan trees outside the bedroom window.”

Heaven’s Prisoners “I was just off Southwest Pass, between Pecan and Marsh islands, with the green whitecapping water of the Gulf Stream to the south and the long, flat expanse of the Louisiana coastline behind me–which is really not a coastline at all but instead of huge wetlands area of sawgrass, dead cypress strung with wisps of moss, and a maze of canals and bayous that are choked with Japanese water lilies whose purple flowers audibly pop in the morning and whose root systems can wind around your propeller shaft like cable wire.”

Dixie City Jam “Not many people believe this, but in the early months of 1942, Nazi submarines used to lie in wait at the mouth of the Mississippi for the tankers that sailed without naval escort from the oil refineries at Baton Rouge into the Gulf of Mexico.”

*Though there are several other novels I could have used, I think these are representative of Burke’s style. Writing in the first person, he is a master of narration with wonderful diction and insights into the human condition. I would like to know your thoughts on Burke, so drop me an email with Burke in the “reply” window.

According to http://www.catalina.com/history.html the Spanish explorer, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, first sighted Catalina on October 7, 1542. Then, on “November 24, the eve of St. Catherine’s Day, the ship of the second Spanish explorer, Sebastian Viscaino, sighted the Island. Viscaino renamed it Santa Catalina in honor of Saint Catherine.” Like the Spanish explorers, my visit was short, but significant to me. The ancient Pimungans (first island inhabitants) are gone now, with only their steatite (soapstone) and chert artifacts to remind us of their presence here. In place of their canoes, yachts and sailboats fill the harbor. The thousands that come to the island’s shores each year come to relax, to shop, to view the scenery of this semi-arid rustic island. I met many wonderful people from many places and as usual, learned much more than I expected or intended. It has been quiet here, in comparison to other parts of my trip, and I can see why Zane Grey chose this place as a home and a writing retreat. I like it as a hotel/retreat. The rooms have no TVs or phones. Each room is named after a Zane Grey novel. They are furnished simply, but adequately.

On Monday, I went to the Airport in the Sky where many movies have been filmed. There was a little historical display. To my distress, I found out that the Yankees established a base here in the Civil War in 1864. As usual, they ran everyone else off the island. I wondered why they would put a base here so late in the war, then I remembered that the Alabama and Shenandoah were terrorizing Yankee fleets and decimating the North’s whaling business. As this photo reveals, I found one of the Yankees who had remained on the island.

This morning, I looked out my open window and the sea was as slick as glass (pardon the cliche), sunlight touching its surface—it should have been painted. In a few minutes, I’ll make my way to the ferry, back to LAX Airport, and then to DFW and on to Louisiana. It will be a long day, but I’ll be meditating on what I’ve seen, what I’ve done, and those I’ve met.

Goodbye, Catalina . . . Until next time.

I have so enjoyed my very busy trip so far, talking to hundreds of people, playing my guitar for small groups or anyone who will listen. My signing at the Barnes and Noble in the mall here was a success, another sell-out. Like at my signings in the French Quarter, I met folks from across the nation.  The CRM at Barnes & Noble said that at times, 20% of the nation’s wealth is here in the Coachella Valley. My timing for the trip was good, as the “season” here is from November to the end of April. Beginning in May, temperatures reach and stay at 100 degrees or more. As I’m going to Catalina early tomorrow, I’ll be heading back to LA today so I can catch an early ferry. Here are some interesting but odd things I’ve observed on this trip:

Two Buck Chuck’s:  This is a California designation of the award winning wines of Charles Shaw, which you can buy here for two dollars a bottle.  (There’s also eggs known as “One Buck Cluck”). People here buy it by the case. You can read more of the wine here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Shaw_wine

Sarah Marshall: Across the nation, I’ve been noticing billboards along the Interstate saying things like, “I am so over you, Sarah Marshall” and “My mother never liked you Sarah Marshall” and others. I found out that this campaign was not a personal vendetta as I first imagined, but  is tied into a blog promoting a new romantic comedy.  I think this is a brilliant idea, incorporating revenge with nationally sanctioned graffiti. You can read about the Sarah Marshall campaign and her boyfriend’s heartbreaking story here: http://www.ihatesarahmarshall.com/ 

Easter Song:  I remember this song, as performed by Gene Autry (read his life here http://www.geneautry.com/geneautry/geneautry_biography.html) It is associated with my earliest of Easter memories:

“Here Comes Peter Cottontail”

Here comes Peter Cottontail
Hoppin’ down the bunny trail,
Hippity hoppity,
Easter’s on its way

Bringin’ ev’ry girl and boy
A basketful of Easter joy
Things to make your Easter
Bright and gay

He’s got jelly beans for Tommy
Colored eggs for sister Sue
There’s an orchid for your mommy
And an Easter bonnet too. Oh!

Here’ comes Peter Cottontail
Hoppin’ down the bunny trail
Hippity hoppity
Happy Easter Day

Look at him hop and listen to him say,
“Try to do the things you should”
Maybe if you’re extra good
He’ll roll lots of Easter eggs your way

You’ll wake up on Easter morning
And you’ll know that he was there
When you find those choc’late bunnies That he’s hiding ev’rywhere, Oh!

Here’ comes Peter Cottontail
Hoppin’ down the bunny trail
Hippity hoppity
Happy Easter Day.

Yesterday,  in my quest for contacts at libraries, stores, etc., I went to the north and east of Los Angeles. I’ve concluded the obvious: California has too many cars. However, in spite of the traffic, surprisingly, I found drivers more careful and polite than in New York. There was some smog, but when it burned off some I was quite taken by the the beauty of the mountains and the beaches (I managed to see two briefly, Santa Monica and Venice). I saw the famous HOLLYWOOD on the hills, but was not as stirred by it as I thought I would be.  I also made it to the famous Huntington Library and spent some time there. What a wonderful bookstore, beautifully landscaped grounds, and art and literature exhibitions.  It also has excellent resources for Western research. I’ll try to have another post on that place later. You can see more of the Huntington Library here: http://www.huntington.org/

Today, I’m off to the desert (one of my other quirky geographical interests) and hope to get some writing done. If you are interested in the desert, there are two movies that you should perhaps see: One is Slow Burn, and the other is the English Patient.

Although I am a committed Southerner, who at this point in life would live nowhere else, I think it is good for me to see California other parts of the country.  And it looks like travel is going to become a greater part of my life. I’m sure there will be many stories in my travels.

I primarily do two programs in the schools I visit. One is a Civil War program and the other is a Scots-Irish program. Both are received well. In either of those shows, I sometimes perform the well-known and stirring Bobby Burns song, “Scots Whae Hae,”  which reportedly records the words of Robert the Bruce to his army before the battle of Bannockburn. A great many Southerners were Scottish (including Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee) so many in fact, that the soldiers came up with Confederate version of “Scots Whae Hae.”  Here are the lyrics, which I obtained from the 12th Louisiana String Band, some of the finest musicians the modern South has produced.

Scots Whae Hae (Confederate Version)

Rally round our country’s flag,
Rally, boys, haste, do not lag,
Come from every vale and crag,
Sons of liberty.

Northern vandals tread our soil,
Forth they come for blood and spoil,
To the homes we’ve made with toil,
Shouting slavery.

Traitorous Lincoln’s bloody band,
Now invades the freeman’s land,
Armed with sword and firebrand,
Against the brave and free.

Arm ye then for fray and fight,
March ye forth by day and night,
Stop not till the foe’s in sight,
Sons of chivalry.

In your veins the blood still flows,
Of brave men who once arose,
Burst the shackles of their foes,
Honest men and free.

Rise then in your power and might,
See the spoiler, brave the fight,
Strike for God, for truth, for right.
Strike for liberty.

*Here is the contact information on the 12th Louisiana String Band:

The 12th Louisiana String Band
Celtic Songs & Uncivil War Reenactments.
Contact: Belinda Brand
BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
Phone: 225.761.2857
www.pointsouth.com/yallcome/12th-louisiana/index.htm