The year that my late wife Pat turned 95, MENSA sent a reporter to interview her about her nine decades as a professional artist and writer.
The writer first asked who or what inspired her to become an artist. Pat explained that at age 4 she accompanied her mother to the School of the Art Institute in Chicago.
While her mother was taking her classes, Pat was at the other end of the building in a class for children. The minimum age to be enrolled was five, but “I was tall for my age, so they let me in.” On the drive home she and her mother would talk about color, shape and space.
The encouragement from her parents and couple good teachers, plus being surrounded by so many beautiful paintings, was her inspiration.
I too have been well endowed by inspiring people in my life. Three truly great clergymen led the way to my ordination and parish ministry. They were devout and pious men who preached and lived a message of love and practical, practicing Christianity.
Another was a quirky, reclusive professor of church history who believed that connections between people, places and events are more important than timelines and memorizing dates. “Everything is related,” he would say, “Now, find the connections.”
How did I end up writing for a newspaper? That came because I was inspired by Benny Sternberg, who wrote for my hometown newspaper and looked and acted if he just stepped off the set of the 1940 film “His Girl Friday.”
Benny wore a battered fedora, smoked cigars and kept a bottle of something toxic in the bottom desk drawer. He was an anarchist who would ask, “Hey, kid, you want a bump?” When it came to bookies and bootleggers, he was a bit sketchy, but everyone liked him.
Fortunately, years ago, publishers Cheryl and Walt Kaechele made room for me, then editor Scott Sullivan kept me around. More recently, current publisher Mike Wilcox extended the same invitation. I am grateful for them.
Years of reading mysteries by Agatha Christie, Georges Simenon and Dorothy L Sayers led to my fun writing “cozy: murder mysteries set in Saugatuck in the 1920s. I like cozyies because yes, someone gets whacked but we don’t have to spread blood and body parts all over, explain biology to young children or make grannies blush.
Then there was Slim the Barber, whose shop was in the basement of a big hotel in Rochester, Minn. He boasted about how he had cut hair for most of the “boys” from the Chicago Outfit when they came to town.
Some people collect stamps or coins; Slim collected hair clippings and had them mounted in an album he showed me. You cannot get more inspiration for writing a murder mystery than by looking at what is left of Frank Nitti, Big Al and a few others. Slim had a lot of trophies from “legits” such as governors, the Mayo brothers and local heroes.
I suspect we have all been inspired by someone, perhaps a lot of someones, and the places and experiences we have in life. Good inspirations bring out the best in us. They touch something important in our mind or heart that is dormant or fibrillating and ignite a spark.
Jean Shepherd and Bill Bryson, did it in their books “Christmas Story” and “The Thunderbolt Kid.” They ignited a quest to appreciate Christmas like it was a generation or so earlier. The stories bring out the best in us by helping us understand what is truly important.
People who truly inspire are not showing off or trying to run your life. Often, without a word of instruction, they are giving you the opportunity to be your best. They do not tell us what to do or how to do something. They give us the freedom to explore, find our own way and create something good.
They can be sneaky about it, too. Sometimes it is months or years until we fully appreciate their gift to us. Often, that puts a smile on our face and a tickle in our heart, but also a bit of regret that we did not appreciate them more at the time.
Life is like that, isn’t it? Often there is a delayed reaction. Sadly, too often it comes when they have died and it is too late.
Which leads to the next question: Are we an inspiration to others? I see this as continuing the practice, a wonderful opportunity and even sacred duty.
But how do we make it happen? It is a bit like Schrödinger’s Cat. We cannot make it happen, because the moment we try, it often evaporates. To decide and then set out to inspire others fizzles and fails.
That’s because the one thing we all really want and need are authentic experiences and genuine people in our life. The men I mentioned above were genuine, whether it was the trio of clergymen or Benny the newspaper man. They were who they were and never pretended to be any different. No showing off or what the Olds called “showboating.”
It is up to us to be the next generation of inspirations. There is a big difference between them Inspirations and influencers. The world has an overabundance of influencers, but there will never be too many true Inspirations.
We inspire by being genuine, exactly who we are and fully integrating our words with actions. Just get on with it, regardless of what it might be. If you think that hard work or thrift, a strong personal spiritual life, planting a garden or appreciating the performing or visual arts, then lead by example.
Above all, inspire others to be more caring and compassionate, by letting them see your care and compassion in actions, not just words.
