What I Brought Home

You may have seen this before in my post about Emusoi. I cannot help sharing
it again. It's my favorite of the whole trip!

Regular readers of MIE are aware that I have been traveling—to Kenya, Tanzania, and London—a trip that did important things to my heart, things that I do not yet fully understand. They feel profound and positive and I am grateful for them.

The physical items that came home in my suitcase (in addition to the mountain of laundry) are easier to present. Here they are:

The souvenir catalogue of the Karen Blixen Museum, replete with photos that
will be boon as I work to describe home interiors, clothing, and characters.

James Wilson's book. He was the brilliant leader of our tour of
the battlefields. Three of my Tolliver books will take place during
the war.

A gift for my grandchildren from Shel Arensen, author of children's books about
Africa. He is also the editor and publisher of Old Africa Magazine and the organizer
of the tour we took. His invitation to join the expedition inspired this trip to Africa.

A Maasai necklace, a gift for my daughter, who dispelled my doubts about

going this trip alone.

Something to join all my little souvenirs on the bookshelves over my computer.
This little guy is made of slices of a flattened beer can. And red--the Maasai color.

A detail of my highly-prized copy of a 1910 map. From the collection of the
British Library, it is the earliest indication of the street layout of the burgeoning
town of Nairobi.

I brought home about 750 photos, some of which you have already seen, and about twenty short films. One of the latter is of ostriches mating that reads like a post-modern love story. I am not at all sure what I will do with that. But the images of my trip are all now safely downloaded and await further study.

What I also took home are ideas—embryonic plots for two World War I novels—numbers 6 and 7 of my series, and many images that I know will make it into my narratives.

I came home with fresh eyes to see what I thought was a finished manuscript for Tolliver #2. I have already taken apart its first four chapters, resequenced the events, and added a new plot thread. It’s going to be a far better book than it otherwise would have been.

Recreation is supposed to give us renewal. My tanks—which life events had depleted of late—are recharged.