multicultural
does not describe me fully
it is where to start
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Jimi Hendrix Inspires Me
Only Jimi Hendrix could make me enjoy another version of "Like a Rolling Stone" as much as I enjoy Bob Dylan’s. I have been listening to it while editing my novel.
Please note that, to view the video on YouTube, after clicking on the photo below, you might have to click again where indicated on the dark screen.
And how does this inspire me? By being so vital and by reminding me that excellence is worth striving for. OMG, that guitar!
OMG, that guitar! Yes! :-) Coincidentally I watched "Sunshine of Your Love" the other day (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52B69YDCo8s&list=FLqpKBnI3KH4JVAopFH0wNtw&index=6) after enjoying a documentary about the band Cream, the original authors.
Cuban, yes happy memories indeed. I had just watched a documentary about Hendrix' life, and his sheer brilliance catapulted me out of the editing funk I was then in. Ergo, this post. Glad you enjoyed it.
My writing frequently explores multicultural themes. Born in Puerto Rico, I moved at a young age to the U.S., where my parents became Pentecostal ministers. Early immersion in Latino and religious cultures preceded later experiences as a businesswoman, a White House Fellow, and life aboard a trawler cruising from Martha’s Vineyard to South America. These sometimes incompatible worlds have given me a respectful outlook toward differing points of view. My short stories, poems, and essays reflect my own inclusive, yet sharply defined, journey across cultural and socioeconomic boundaries. I recently published Peace on the Journey, a poetry collection which explores the theme of renewal in the face of adversity.
@peaceonjourney
The defining image of this blog is a waterfall. Its inspiration comes from a scene in one of my novels in which the infant protagonist escapes her mother’s attention and wanders off to a nearby waterfall. While there, she experiences a mysterious sense of wellbeing, which she yearns to replicate for the rest of her life.
Protected Works. Material on this blog is copyrighted by Judith Mercado. That includes material posted under the blog's previous name: Pilgrim Soul: A Judith Mercado Blog.
My short story, “Orphans and Hoodlums,” is included in this phati'tude Literary Magazine anthology. Click the image for more information or to purchase.
The Literary Lab's Variations on a Theme Anthology includes my short story "The Barcelona Chairs." Click on the image to purchase the anthology.
Anthology which includes my award-winning short story, "Asunder." Click on the image to purchase the anthology.
"I have made love to my writing and am now in the afterglow."
Judith Mercado
"Insist on yourself; never imitate. Your own gift you can present every moment with the cumulative force of a whole life's cultivation; but of the adopted talent of another you have only an extemporaneous half possession... Do that which is assigned to you, and you cannot hope too much or dare too much."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
About his fictional town Macondo, widely acknowledged to be inspired by his real home town of Aracataca, Colombia. “Macondo is not so much a place as it is a state of mind.”
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."
Plato
"The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers fear."
Nelson Mandela
"The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing."
Blaise Pascal, Pensées
"There is vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action and, because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is nor how valuable nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly... to keep the channel open."
Martha Graham
2 comments:
OMG, that guitar! Yes! :-) Coincidentally I watched "Sunshine of Your Love" the other day (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52B69YDCo8s&list=FLqpKBnI3KH4JVAopFH0wNtw&index=6) after enjoying a documentary about the band Cream, the original authors.
Many thanks for the happy memories.
Greetings from London.
Cuban, yes happy memories indeed. I had just watched a documentary about Hendrix' life, and his sheer brilliance catapulted me out of the editing funk I was then in. Ergo, this post. Glad you enjoyed it.
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