"What if". . . The Reason Stories Exist. The Reason I Write.

“What if?

“What if—the basis of all story. The small child asks all the what ifs. All of life is story, story unravelling and revealing meaning. Despite our inability to control circumstances, we are given the gift of being free to respond to them in our own way, creatively or destructively.” Madeleine L’Engle Walking on Water

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It’s good to revisit my friend Madeleine L’Engle. This blog has slowly morphed from strictly walking through her non-fiction work Walking on Water, to a place for blog hops, book reviews, and some flash fiction, along with other tidbits. All of these things offer creative fun, and are met with a warm welcome from someone that doesn’t do well with repetition (that would be me). Still, it was nice to crack open this biblio-friend and see what nugget of truth would be the next bit of discussion for this blog.

Funny that it was her section on “what if.” The morphing of my blog has made some of my information on the about page a bit narrow in its scope. I’ve been meaning to go back to it and get the page updated. One thing that I state about myself, and that I plan to keep, is that I inherited the “what if” gene from my dad. Add to that the fact that I’m writing this on Father’s Day and, well, I’m feeling a bit serendipitous, in the Christian sense of the word. (Um, is there one? No? Well, there is now).

Long story full-circle, I’m thankful for my father, and I’m thankful for the creative way I can look at the world, thanks to the mysterious ways of genetics. My father read science-fiction and fantasy all my life, and with a veracious appetite. When I was younger, I didn’t exactly ‘get’ it. I wasn’t a big fan, myself. I liked to read many genres, and I enjoyed creative writing, but it wasn’t a consuming pastime for me. My dad, on the other hand, always had a book with him. He loved the possibility of “what if” and talked about concepts in books with the fascination of a child.

“What if we could go back in time . . . and bring a gun?” (He was a big fan

of epic sci-fi wars).

“What if we discover life on another planet? Or what if aliens infiltrated our government?” (He loved the possibility of aliens).

“What if one of the soldiers that crucified Christ was cursed with always being a warrior and never being able to die?” (This was the premise of one of his favorite series and he talked about it a lot. Anyone know what story this is? I can’t remember).

And—something I learned from my dad’s favorite cousin after he passed away—”What if there were roads that went up to the sky, that allowed us to reach the moon? One day, this will become a reality.” (This assertion, as a child, on his poor, remote family farm in Oklahoma, in the early 1940s).

Yes, the “what if” gene is a beautiful part of our humanness. We all arrive in this world with it. Some people are allowed to nurture it. Some lose sight of it for awhile. Some lose it all together, shriveled up under the weight of the cares of this world. Still, as ML’E says, we have that choice in how we respond to the things we can’t control, either “creatively or destructively.”

Today, on Father’s Day, I honor the memory of my dad. At times, he was a misunderstood man. A visionary soul that didn’t always know how to fit in with the “working 9 to 5 to get ahead” mentality. It seems he didn’t deal well with repetition either . . . always growing frustrated working for others, wanting to be his own boss. He had inventions to build in our garage, cars to custom finish, and lots and lots of books to read.

What if my dad was still alive to see The Tethered World come to life in the pages of the book? Oh my. He would be beyond excited and proud of his little girl. As it was, it only took me walking into the same room as him to get that sort of reaction.

What if there’s a library up in heaven, where my dad can sit down with a copy of my book and a cup of coffee? If he does, I hope he won’t skip the dedication page. I plan on dedicating my story to his memory and his special gift of “what if”.