A Path Worth Taking
I hope you’re having a good summer. My heart goes out to those suffering in the wake of wildfires and excessive heat. How many wakeup calls do we need?
I will write my prime minister, MP, premier, and MLA again about the importance of taking care of our environment. I hope those who are able, will do that as well.
Now on to my news…
I’m late getting it out because I’ve been working on A Path Worth Taking—a reworking of the non-fiction book I launched last year.
Though I received some good reviews for Along Came A Gardener—based on my 25 years as a family therapist—the title, content headings, and section breaks created with nature in mind did not work. Too cute? I think so. And off brand. Amazon immediately put the book in some nature and gardening categories. Google searches did something similar.
A New Book Cover
Though I had spent considerable time writing Along Came A Gardener that I had hoped would be helpful to many, I wasn’t getting to the readers who might enjoy and benefit from my insights. So I decided to rework some of the content and order a new book cover which I’m showing for the first time here.
Launching a new book is not for the faint of heart. A lot goes into it, as any publisher will tell you. Once I get my ducks in a row, I plan to launch A Path Worth Taking in the late fall or in the spring of 2027.
And A New Website
And along with the spit and polish that this release requires, I’m also launching an additional website, this one devoted to A Path Worth Taking, which will have posts on what I gleaned from my years working to help people deal with their mental health challenges. I should have it ready for viewing by my next Substack newsletter.
My Bucket List
Robert and I have been fortunate. We’ve travelled widely. And yet, when you have an adventurous spirit, there’s always somewhere else you’d like to go.
On my bucket list was a trip to Desolation Sound, a boater’s and diver’s paradise found at the northern end of the Salish Sea and of the Sunshine Coast in British Columbia. Last week, Robert and I took a ferry to Quadra Island, and then another to Cortes Island, where we met Jonas, the owner of Misty Isles, a sailboat charter that would take us to the sound.
Frankly, I was anxious about the trip, because of my back issues and the fact I’d been nauseated many times at sea. One uncomfortable time was when we travelled on a boat from Port Hardy to a cruise ship offshore to deliver a captain. While the captain climbed oboard, I used a bucket. It was embarassing because when I looked up at the cruise ship beside us, I saw more than a dozen passengers staring down at me. Another time was with friends around Vancouver Island. Our friend had chartered a sailboat for her boyfriend’s birthday; the sea was choppy that day and needless to say I headed for the handrails to upchuck. And the third time was when I was on a CBC assignment in Maui and had gone on a catamaran with the all-female crew of the Emily Carr. I think it was the alcohol that proved to be too much that day. That, and the rolicking seas.
Both Jonas and Amy of The Misty Isles on Cortes Island reassured me that we could cancel and get our money back if the day’s weather promised to throw the boat around. The day turned out to be lovely!
And with sea bands on our wrists and candied ginger to savour, we handled the 6 hour journey just fine. Our trip to Desolation Sound for 6 hours included a stop for swimming (not us—still pretty chilly) and a stop at Refuge Cove, which was once a thriving community of thousands, and a major refuelling stop for seagoing vessels.
The Importance of Not Giving Up
As you can see from above, I managed. Subscribers to my newsletter may remember me sharing my MRI, and the seriousness of my back problems: severe spinal stenosis, spondylethesis, osteoarthritis, and scoliosis. In other words, I have a narrowing of the spine in three places, and a slipped disc, along with the regular back woes of aging. My GP and orthopedic surgeon told me I would need surgery if I wanted to avoid a wheelchair.
I haven’t had surgery, nor am I going to. On my new website, A Path Worth Taking, I’ll be writing about what I’ve tried, the obstacles I’ve overcome, and what I’ve been doing to improve my back. And why I won’t be having surgery. I understand now why so many give up on themselves. Pain is hard to manage at times. I’ll be sharing the link in my next newsletter.
A House Full of Strangers
A House Full of Strangers, a book of short stories, set in Winnipeg in the 1940s and 1950s was a delight to write and is now available for sale.
But the reviews for A House Full of Strangers have been coming in slowly, like molasses flowing on a plate. Still, I’m thankful for every one.
“Diana Stevan’s writing is direct and grounded, with a clear focus on characters and situations. ... Readers who enjoy historical fiction and character-centered storytelling will find A House Full of Strangers appealing.“
Carol Thompson for Readers’ Favorite
“Ms. Stevan’s mature, focused writing style really shines...
James M. Fisher for The Seaboard Review of Books
Sonia writes: “Ms. Stevan weaves together humor and tragedy, prejudice and determination, as this multi-generational cast all search for ways to improve their lives. …I laughed, cried, and thought deeply about what it means to move across the world and begin again in search of a better future.”
And I’ve discovered that people don’t rush to buy a book of short stories. Most people prefer to read a novel. I should’ve known as I have every collection of Alice Munro’s books of short stories, and yet I’ve read only one or two of them. But now I’m hooked on short stories. I recently read a wonderful short story in The Walrus, a Canadian magazine worth subscribing to.
Though the number of reviews are scanty, I’m pleased I wrote A House Full of Strangers. During the writing of it, I hadn’t realized that I had an experience many don’t share—that of growing up in a house with strangers over my head. I was born in one rooming house run by my parents, Ukrainian immigrants, and I didn’t leave another until I got married at 19.
As I sifted through the memories to create the wealth of stories in this book, I was that child again enjoying the different strangers coming up our front walk to rent a room, knocking on our door to complain about a fellow roomer’s unruly boyfriend, or joining my family for the odd supper or cup of coffee in the kitchen. They shared the troubles of their lives and I got to listen to them. I never wrote them down at the time. Now, more than a half century later, I relied on my memory and imagination to create A House Full of Strangers.
If you read this book, please take a few moments to write a review.
What We Recently Watched
Robert and I are huge sports fans and regularly watch the CFL, some golf, tennis, and curling in season. Right now, we’ve been immersed in watching the world’s soccer teams complete for the World Cup. It’s a game I once found boring. But now no longer. The skill and athleticism players need to move the ball from one end of the field to the other is truly amazing.
And we view the odd movie. We saw an excellent one the other night: My Old Lady, a 2014 film, available on Netflix. Wonderful actors: Maggie Smith, Kevin Kline, and Kristen Scott Thomas. A middle-aged American arrives in Paris to claim the apartment he inherited after his father’s death. I won’t say any more, except it was such a delight to watch. Funny and sad with a great ending.
What We Are Watching
Robert and I subscribe to Professor Timothy Snyder’s Substack newsletter. A history of professor at Yale University, and now at the University of Toronto, Snyder just started his lecture series on Hitler and Stalin—available for free to the public on Youtube. He’s an amazing lecturer, but not always easy to follow, because he dives so deeply into every subject. Still, after hearing one of his lectures, I’ve come away so much richer and more appreciative of where we are now and where we’ve been in history.
Years ago, I read Snyder’s history book, Bloodlands, when I was researching my baba’s story for Sunflowers Under Fire, set in Ukraine and Russia during WWI.
Snyder’s known as an expert in Eastern European history. Two years ago, Robert and I took his Yale course on The History of Ukraine—available on Youtube. He clearly pointed out to the fact that Kyiv existed well before Moscow took any shape. The course also helped us understand today’s war with Russia.
What I’ve Read
I just finished reading another one of Martha Conway’s novels. We Meet Apart, a historical fiction set in Ireland during World War II, stands out because Ms. Conway weaves in otherworldly elements in her tale of two sisters, Gabrielle and Sabine. After their parents die of typhus in Paris, along with Sabine, and the Germans are on the move in France, Gabrielle sets out for Ireland, hoping to get a boat to America. But when the sisters meet in Ireland, Gabrielle wonders if Sabine is truly alive, or are the Irish pookies at play? Complicating matters is a German pilot, who Sabine professes to love. It’s an intriguing story with many layers and well-depicted supporting characters.
What I’m Reading Now
I’ve started Straw Shoes by Mathias B. Freese—”the story of Ah Ling, a 19th century Chinese farmer who gambles with Fate and leaves his fields for the brutal promise of Gold Rush-era San Francisco.”
The story starts with Ah toiling hard in the fields. A new father of a baby girl, Ah laments she’s not a boy. In China, a boy is preferred because he could help with the farming when he’s old enough to pick up a scythe. Though Ah’s a devoted husband and father, he’s a man in his thirties, looking at the rest of his life. He struggles with that age-old question: “Am I all that I can be?”
I’ve read a number of Freese’s books, and I’ve been rewarded every time. Freese dives deep into his characters, explores the humanity there, and shows what humankind is capable of when faced with adversity.
‘Till Next Time
Thank you again for subscribing. I hope the rest of your July is wonderful. I look forward to connecting with you in August and writing a shorter newsletter. :)
Hugs,
