Wendell Affield - Meadow Reflections

Tuesday, April 16, will be a busy day:

At 8:30 AM I will be on “Coyote Country Radio” KKWB 102.5 FM discussing Muddy Jungle Rivers.

At 7:00 PM Fosston Community Library and American Legion have teamed up to host a book reading and discussion. The public is invited.

This past month I visited with two classes at Bemidji State University who used Muddy Jungle Rivers as a text book Spring 2013 semester: Thank you Professor Marsha Driscoll and Professor Tom Murphy. I recently received an inquiry from University of Indiana, South Bend about purchasing Muddy Jungle Rivers for the Autumn 2013 semester for a History class.

This past weekend was very successful at the Bemidji Gun Show. I have booked for two up-coming gun shows in other cities.

We’ve been working on electronic marketing these past few months with great success. This past week we ran a Facebook promotion titled “Remembering Vietnam Forty Years Later.” 12,778 people clicked on it, many following through to purchase the Kindle edition. Others went to my web site for signed copies.

Thank you TJ Design Studio, Bemidji, MN and Hofmann Consulting, Edina, MN, for a job well-done.

Bemidji American Legion Commander Dan Vital presents a copy of Muddy Jungle Rivers book and baseball cap to National Commander Jim Koutz

American Legion

National Commander Jim Koutz,

I had the honor of meeting you while you were visiting Bemidji, Minnesota. I donate this case (24 books) of Muddy Jungle Rivers for your Operation Comfort Warriors program.

Feel free to use the books in whichever way you think most fitting. (Mailed to National Headquarters Feb 18, 2013.)

Keep up the good work.

Wendell Affield

cc: Al Zdon, Communications Director/Editor    American Legion, Dept of Minnesota

Blackduck Community Library and AMVETS have teamed up to host a book reading and discussion by Wendell Affield, author of Muddy Jungle Rivers, a Vietnam War memoir. The event begins at 6:30 PM, March 14, at Blackduck Good Samaritan Senior Living in the “great room.” The public is invited.

Muddy Jungle Rivers is a close-up look at life on a gunboat during 1968, the bloodiest year of the Vietnam War. It is the story of a seven-man crew captained by a volatile pro-war enlisted man, told from a twenty-year-old Cox’n’s point of view. In Muddy Jungle Rivers the reader will glimpse the genesis of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Steve Almond wrote the Foreword.

Affield recently visited classes at Bemidji State University and discussed Muddy Jungle Rivers, writing, memory, and research. He is currently studying Abnormal Psychology at BSU to gain insights into human behavior as he works on his latest writing project. Affield and his wife, Patti, live on a farm west of Bemidji.

Affield will donate a portion of the evening’s book sales to the Blackduck Community Library.

To learn more, go to http://www.krls.org/branches/branch_bl.html

This afternoon I drove up to Red Lake to say good- bye to a friend. Tom Lussier, Vietnam Veteran and crewmember on a PBR (Patrol Boat, River) had died unexpectedly. I met Tom more than twenty years ago. I enjoyed his quiet way and never-ending stories.

Many times, Tom invited me to come fishing a trout lake with him, but each time I was too busy. A few weeks ago I saw him in Bemidji and again he invited me. I told him that this summer I would definitely be up for a day of fishing.

Tom’s Memorial reads:

And if I should go before you

Know that part of me still

remains…

You will not see me, yet I will

Be there walking with you.

You will not touch me,

Yet I will live in your heart and

memory always.

Have faith that we will one day

walk

Hand in Hand in eternity.

Until then, live your life for life

is good…

And know that I am with you.

Tom, perhaps one day we’ll still get out fishing.

Smooth sailing, my friend.

Sixty years ago my grandmother began attending a psychology class at New York City College, studying abnormal behavior. For over half a century she searched in vain for a cure, trying to understand why her daughters had been cursed with mental illness. She left behind thousands of pages of New York City Mental Health booklets, newspaper clippings, and letter drafts to doctors and politicians who she thought might help find a cure. She also left behind hundreds of pages of hand-written notes, reminders for when she visited with her daughters’ therapists.

Today, sixty years later, I am attending a class, studying abnormal behavior, trying to make sense of the heart-wrenching story my grandmother left behind. It’s interesting to note that the first Diagnostic And Statistical Manual Of Mental Disorders was not published until 1968. As I scratch the surface of psychological knowledge I juxtapose my grandmother’s notes, the terminology and theory she was taught, to today’s nosological classification of mental disorders.

Here are a few pages of her 1953 psychology class notes:

Each Sunday I plan to post information as I move forward in developing this memoir.

The first paragraph on the Acknowledgements page of Muddy Jungle Rivers reads “This memory journey began with a series of essays I wrote while attending writing classes taught by Dr. Mark Christensen at Bemidji State University (BSU). His suggestions and prompts were instrumental in illuminating those nocturnal conversations I had with “Buddha” Ed Thomas. Mark’s encouragement allowed me to explore depths I had shied away from.” (“Buddha” Ed Thomas was the captain of the riverboat I served on in Vietnam. Ed Thomas and I reconnected twenty years after Vietnam—before he died in 1999 he would call me in the early morning hours, troubled, intoxicated, reliving those days on the boat.)

Today’s Bemidji Pioneer features an interview with Dr. Mark Christensen. “Five decades later: BSU English professor to give senior voice recital.”

This article provides some insight to this gifted, humble man.

http://www.bemidjipioneer.com/content/five-decades-later-bsu-english-professor-give-senior-voice-recital

Today I count Mark as a friend and mentor. Thank you, Mark.

Quilt of Valor
Presented to: Wendell “Afe” Affield
Handmade/Quilted by Lanee
Dedicated With Thanks for Serving

“Lanee” is Kathleen Paulson, Solway, Minnesota. This past Saturday afternoon, Kathleen, her husband, Mark, and her parents, Kenny and Carol Stevens, stopped by our home and presented the quilt. I am deeply humbled and will treasure this keepsake.

I was not familiar with the Quilt of Valor program so I Googled it and discovered that,
“A Quilt of Valor is a wartime quilt made to honor our war wounded. It is a tangible way to say: “Thank you for your service, sacrifice and valor for our country.””
My war ended over forty years ago but we have again been at war for more than a decade so these Quilts of Valor truly are “wartime quilts.”

After Lanee and her family left I studied the quilt—the tiny, intricate stitching, the unique pattern design, the quilting. I’m sure Lanee spent many, many hours creating this piece of art. She even stitched in, “Treasure each Moment” a phrase I had written in her father’s copy of  Muddy Jungle Rivers.
As I studied the pictures we took, I reflected on the two little girls, Kadance and Livia, perched on the quilt. The older girl, Kadance, was an infant when I began writing Muddy Jungle Rivers. One evening this poem, “Lullaby for the Lost,”  came to me as I held her:

Autumn’s rain echoes overhead
as I rock my granddaughter tonight
Another tune, staccato,
lulled you to sleep
on a muddy jungle river

Readers have asked why I use no punctuation—no periods. How do you explain that there is no end to loving a grandchild: No end to remembering those we lost in war?

Today I mourn the young men and women lost in this new war who will never have a chance to hold a grandchild. But it is comforting to know there are people in the world like Lanee who step forward and offer a symbol representing what we sacrificed for.
Thank you, Lanee

This past year has been very rewarding with the publication of Muddy Jungle Rivers. In December it was nominated for the Minnesota Book Award. On January 26 the four finalists for each genre will be announced.
Bemidji State University used the book in a Fall 2012 History Class and will use it again in a Spring 2013 Honors Program class. Thank you Professor Tom Murphy—it was rewarding to speak to your students.

Two years ago Muddy Jungle Rivers was a 350 page manuscript collecting dust in my office. I was busy doing research and writing my next book. Each day I was distracted by that dusty manuscript and finally realized I must publish it before I could fully concentrate on my next project. After sending query letters to several agents and publishers who worked with war genre literature I realized no one was going to publish an unknown living in northern Minnesota.

I began studying self-publishing avenues and was horrified at the exploitation of uninformed first-time authors by so many Self Publishing companies. As I researched, I came to the realization that I could publish my own book. On January 1, 2012, my wife and I created Hawthorn Petal Press, LLC. Today, Whispering Petals Press is our imprint and a resource center for other self-publishing writers.

2012 has been a learning experience about book-selling and distribution. I received a $1,000 Individual Artist grant from Region 2 Arts Council for marketing. The grant allowed me to purchase three advertisements in the New York Review of Books. The reason I used NYRB was because Steve Almond, a well-known East Coast author, had graciously written the Foreword for Muddy Jungle Rivers. Steve’s work is light-years from war genre literature. I reasoned that his name on a Vietnam War memoir would piqué his audience’s curiosity. Steve and I had developed an interesting connection when I studied under him in a writing workshop. After each advertisement in NYRB I experienced a small on-line sales increase but certainly not worth the cost of the ads.

One morning at breakfast, Kent Nerburn, a local resident and nationally recognized author, and I discussed book marketing and sales. Kent expressed frustration with the traditional publishing industry and said that he is impressed with the positive reception and interest he receives when visiting regional libraries. I respect his knowledge and experience.

2013 my goal is to expand into the regional systems of Kitchigami Regional Library and Lake Agassiz Regional Library.

My marketing plan is:

Sell a minimum of thirty books at each presentation. At that threshold, I can donate five dollars to the library for each book—a minimum of $150.00—and five dollars for each additional book sold. Because it is a Vietnam War memoir, I hope to create a partnership between the participating library and the local American Legion and other veterans’ organizations.

I just scheduled my first presentation at Lake Agassiz Regional Library—Fosston Branch, for April 16, 2013 at 7:00 pm. Rob Mayer, Commander, Fosston American Legion, is excited about the opportunity to collaborate with the library in this veteran Community Support idea.

If your organization is interested in booking a presentation, please contact me at info@whisperingpetalspress.com

Our community has been fantastic in their promotion of Muddy Jungle Rivers since it was published in April 2012. Thank you, Bemidji Public Library, Bemidji Community Art Center, Beltrami County History Center, Region 2 Arts Council, Luekens Village Foods, Book World, Kat’s Book Nook, TJ Design Studio, Shannon’s Art and Soul, KAXE Radio, Lakeland Public Television, David Quam Video Productions, and American Legion.

View Muddy Jungle Rivers interview on Lakeland Public Television at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3bWJGUstUo

On November 11, 2012 I spoke at the Red Lake Nation Veterans Day ceremony. I was humbled when elder Larry Stillday, a Vietnam Veteran, presented me with an honorary membership in the Ponemah Three Star Warrior Society. Genesis of the Society is explained by elder Eugene Stillday on this link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ME1cBoYIj6o I was honored to carry the U.S. Flag in the Veterans Grand Entry for the afternoon powwow. Thank you Red Lake Nation veterans and all the Red Lake community for your hospitality.

I’ve been studying the Seven Sacred Teachings. Anton Treuer, Professor of Ojibwe at Bemidji State University, loaned me a book written by David Bouchard and Dr. Joseph Martin. Bouchard, explains, ““The Seven Sacred Teachings” is a message of traditional values and hope for the future. The Teachings are universal to most First Nation [American Indian] people.” Bouchard’s web site: http://www.davidbouchard.com/mtw/sst.pdf

In studying the background of the Teachings I was amazed to discover that they have passed down countless generations through oral storytelling since around the time Christ was born. The “Seven Sacred Teachings” is the Indian touchstone to individual growth and responsibility, and strong community. The “Teachings” and the Ten Commandments of Christianity come from what both cultures respect—one Creator.

After Red Lake Nation elder Eugene Stillday invited me to speak at the 2012 Veterans Day ceremony I began thinking, what should I talk about? I called Eugene and he invited me up to Ponemah to discuss it. Eugene introduced me to another Red Lake elder, Larry Stillday. Larry and I discovered we had something in common—we had both served in the Mekong Delta during the Vietnam War. Larry introduced me to the Seven Sacred Teachings.

I was amazed by what I learned. I had grown up on a farm near Red Lake Nation and attended grade school in Nebish. Over the years, I attended school in Blackduck and Bemidji. Now, for many years, I have attended Bemidji State University as a part-time student. In my sixty-five years, I had never heard of the Teachings. For those who are not familiar with northern Minnesota, we have a very large Ojibwe Indian population and three reservations in our region. Perhaps it’s time to devote time in our schools to learn about the Seven Sacred Teachings—there always seems to be time to learn about Cortez, Columbus, and the Pilgrims.

Each day, I am awed at how little I know.

It’s been a busy autumn. October 30th I visited with BSU history students who are using Muddy Jungle Rivers this semester as a text book. Saturday, November 3rd Patti and I have a book signing at Opener Art Festival, hosted at the Sanford Center in Bemidji. Lakeland TV, Channel 9, Common Ground will air a Muddy Jungle Rivers interview on November 6th, at 6:00 pm. (I’ll be up against Romney and Obama that night.) November 11, the interview will air again.
November 11th, I’m honored to be guest speaker at Red Lake Nation for the Veterans Day ceremony. I find my psychology class at BSU fascinating as I begin to learn how and what motivates human behavior. I find it ironic that as I learn about the Seven Sacred Teachings we are about to celebrate another Thanksgiving.