Steve Saint | Five Years After

'Lil Desert

Although it’s never once mentioned between the pages of Bryony why nineteenth century pianist and composer John Simons owns Arabian horses, Diane Roberds of Indiana offers some insight, based on her experiences with the breed. For years, Roberds fancied quarter horses until she purchased an Arabian horse from the annual horse auction of the 115 year old Salem Ranch in Flannagan, Illinois (http://www.salemranch.com/). The ranch is residential counseling center that offers a structured Christian program in a farm setting for at-risk boys. In the past, the ranch specialized in Arabian horses, but now accepts donations of other breeds. “I had been going through the list of horses that were going to the auction and I jokingly said I might be interested if the prices were reasonable,” Roberds said. So in March 2009, Roberds purchased a 17 yr. old Egyptian Arabian mare named Desert Shalome. According to her registration papers she was foaled in Tomahawk, Wisconsin, and had changed hands several times before winding up at Salem Ranch. Roberds fondly calls her ‎'lil Desert. Arabians, Roberds said, are known for their beauty (“They have finely chiseled heads, tipped out ears, a dished-out faces,” Roberds said), temperament, elegance and stamina. They trot gracefully and proudly as they carry their tails high. “I can see why a musician would like Arabian horses, “Roberds said. “They are classy and elegant, like classical music. My Arabian is small; she looks like a small horse or large pony. She's independent and a little stand-offish but a very nice, quiet and dependable mare. We--my husband and I--like her enough to say she has aforever home." Arabian horses have one less vertebra than most horses, so the coupling on their back is shorter, necessitating a special saddle for optimal fit. At seventy, Roberds enjoys riding ‎'lil Desert, but she feeding and grooming her is fun, too. “She really is a sweet little horse,” Roberds said. “I’ve been horse-crazy from the time I was three years old,” Roberds said. “My kids grew up with horses. If I was younger I might want to show them—I’ve done a few fun shows, but I’m not really a competitor.”

Bryony's Three--Verse Scripture Playlist

Bryony is not a “Christian” vampire novel, nor did I write it specifically for a Christian audience.

And as a Christian, some—not all—of the songs on my inspirational playlist while I was writing Bryony are Christian. In fact, that playlist is very eclectic. I wrote about it here: http://bryonyseries.blogspot.com/2010/08/experimental-posts-and-play-lists.html

Yet, music was not the only tool I used to keep me focused on Bryony’s storyline during its roughtest drafts. Bryony contains thirty chapters, which I mentally divided into three parts of ten chapters each. Above each section was a virtual scripture-verse canopy that defined its theme. Here are the verses:

1 Peter 5:8. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”

Deuteronomy 30:19: “I set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore choose life.”

Isaiah 5:20: “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”

Perhaps, if Fr. Alexis had been more discerning, he might have impressed these verses on Melissa and urged her to make different choices. But he didn’t and so….

Who's Your Crush?

A couple of weeks ago at the distribution center, my teen daughter was playfully teasing another teen girl about someone she liked.

The latter, of courser, would not reveal his name, but I figured it out yesterday when the young man in question passed me in the aisle pushing a shopping cart full of newspapers. Of course, the girl was convinved I had noticed her staring at him or trying to hide a smile, but that wasn't the case, at all. It was simply intuition.

Then she surprised me by asking, "Who's your crush?"

Without hesitation, I answered, "He's imaginary."

The girl looked puzzled.

"He doesn't exist."

The confused look persisted.

"I write fiction," I said. "I have a book coming out this year."

Another carrier interrupted us at that point, and that was the end of it. This morning, being Valentine's Day, I'm recalling another conversation out on the route when, as we threw newspapers, my teens rattled off the names of the various couples featured in Bryony. Everyone, for their own reasons, had their favorite (Of course, we couldn't pair Henry with anbody, but that's another story).

I knew I had done an acceptable job with the story when I realized I was becoming jealous of Melissa. Despite my answer to the girl, in truth, I am "in love" with all of the characters, as well as the storyline and the ancillary details: the line drawings, the music, the recipes, and yes, even the editing, because it's through this last that I erase the subtle and not-so-subtle wrinkles from my prose, which then positively influences my other writing, too.

On Valentine's Day, many people will celebrate romance and still others will focus on the sacrificial love that is the hallmark of the Christian faith. I propose a third, which I hope all my readers will find, if they do not yet have it.

And that is a driving force, a passion for something that consumes you, shapes and spurs you forward--an art form, a cause, ministry--a reason for tumbling out of bed early, lighting the lamp late at night, and making the minutes between these poles, bearable, enjoyable, and filled with a satisfaction so tremendous it defies definition.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Denise Unland's Alternative Geneology Part 8

By Ed Calkins, The Steward of Tara

Luckily, help was to come from Rome. There, a certain visionary ability for predicting future trends was not matched with basic knowledge of geography or common sense. Cardinal Bush realized that a new religion was gaining converts in the spiritual vacuum in North Africa.

He knew if something wasn't done, this new religion would spread to rival that of the church. Missionaries had to be deployed! Existing orders had to be reinvented. To this end, he sent Brother Clover and his monks a new mandate. 'Go to Greece and convert any potential Turks.' Shrugging his shoulders, Brother Clover deployed his monks, leaving the island of Iceland to be discovered and settled latter in history.

Once in Greece, the flaw of sending a pack of monks, who knew not a word of Greek and taking a vow of silence anyway, became clear. The monks did their best they to pantomime the gossip but the populous, who were already Christian, thought the Catholic guys in ropes were suffering some kind of spastic disorder possible caused by a misplaced devotion to a pope. Doing what they did back then when anyone had spastic fits, they called the priests for help.

Perhaps this could have been the first Christian vs. Christian religious war as the priests and brothers eyed each other hostilely. Surely bad words would have slipped if the monks could talk. Fists might have flown if they weren't men of the cloth. Angry gestures were directed at the priests and were countered by words in Greek, but both sides quickly realized the futility of this confrontation. Quickly it was decided that a drinking contest was the only way to settle it.

Denise Unland's Alternate Geneology, Part 5

By Ed Calkins, the Steward of Tara.

Then came the day at the coliseum when Leo was to be fed to the lions. In the stands, a man known only as The Donald, who once controlled all the coliseum betting in the Roman empire and had just sold half his business to the Roman government.

The Donald loved to gamble, but hated to leave things to chance, and had good reason to be confident that no matter how many Christians the lions ate, he would make money. What he didn't count on was the worst relapse in history.

Modern 12 step programs that tell you; 'every slip has a start'. For Leo it was small wager he placed while being dragged to his trial. "Five on the Lions" he called. But though the shouting the bookie herd ' five on Leo' and so the bet was booked.

Now, after six years of no red meat, no salt, only healthy rabbits food, Leo saw the hungry lions and saw only red meat. The carnage that occurred broke the bookies, angered animal activists, and devastated Leo’s low calorie, low sodium diet. Lions ran in terror as Leo tore limbs to gorge on the red meat. Donald wasn't concerned about the bets on Leo because of the spread. If a better took the lions, he had to spot sixteen Christians.

Donald knew the lions were never fed more then ten. After ten Christians, the lions wouldn't be hungry. How would it look to the coliseum goers if the lions wouldn't eat their daily Christians? On the others side, a better on Christians had to spot two lions. Surely Leo would stop eating after one. The Donald had no idea what it’s like eating lettuce for six years. In a public display of morbid gluttony, Leo didn't stop eating till the last lion in Greece was consumed.

After this, Donald was still smiling. You see, he had sold half his bookie operations to the Roman Government. Now they would find out which half that got! (Collection, Donald/ Payouts, Rome) Some say that this debt caused the fall of Rome. For his additional offence of animal cruelty, Leo was banished for the Roman Empire and so his story ends in the Latin Chronicles without a word of where he went.

Consider where Leo could have gone after banishment. Would he have gone to southern Africa? After eating as many lions, I would think that Leo would avoid that temptation, don't you? Is not it more likely that he would have gone as far from lions as he could get...as in north....as in north but not within the Roman Empire. I think you get my point.

For more informatoin on Ed Calkins, the Steward of Tara, visit www.bryonyseries.com

Denise Unland's Alternate Geneology Part 4

By now, a life of compulsion had taken its toll. Already very over weight, hopelessly in debt, over thirty, and unable to find any really good comic books; how much did Leo really have to lose? Nero had already died and with each new emperor, the Christian persecutions had expanded. Each day the coliseum’s scratch sheet listed the deaths of Christian inmates as a 'sure bet'. Why couldn't he get in on that?

The next day, Leo stood in the center of the town square and proclaimed himself a Christian. The towns folk, doubled over with laughter. Leo insisted, revealing the cross he wore under is tunic around his neck. They laughed even harder, tossed coins in his direction, and swore that this comic prop was even better then the donut stained scratch sheet he once produces when he did that bit about being 'addicted'. The more he insisted, the harder they laughed, catapulting his comedian career while doming his ambitions as a martyr.

In the days that followed, Leo's professing being Christian began to competing with coliseum attendance, creating an ancient version of late night TV wars. No matter what he tried, Leo's proclamations of Christianity were the most outrageous jokes to grace the streets. Not helpful was Leo's new addiction. No longer able to afford comic books, Leo discovered that the images in temples were far more entertaining and enjoyable than kneeing on rice. Perhaps the best joke passed around was him claiming he only went to temples for the art! Even his habit of wearing a white tunic with a red cross only got him the called "The Comic Crusader". (I wonder if Leo invited the T Shirt.) After years of this, Leo realized he would never make martyrdom.

Finally, Leo, now morbidly obese and spiritually devastated, gave in to the priest and converted to Hinduism which required a diet of only vegetable. Perhaps it was the change of diet, but Leo's addictive personality began to withdraw. Not only did he avoid bakeries, and kneeing on rice, but he stopped proclaiming, which destroyed his career as a comedian. In addition, he lost a lot of weight which didn't escape the local military. It occurred to the authorities that Leo was fasting, and probably kneeing on rice in secret. The authorities, who never really enjoyed humor, realized it first. Leo was a Christian!

Crowds gathered at his home when he was arrested, convinced that this was a comic stunt that the government was in on. They roared, rolled, and choked with laughter as Leo loudly protested that he was no longer Christian.