My father died last month and I surprised myself by how strong my desire was to have an item of his clothing. I now have a soft green checked work shirt of his which I will wear in the Autumn when I go walking.

I hope you continue to enjoy your mother's skirt and are able to pass it down to someone else in the family in 30 years time.

thank you Candace, et al.

I am sad to learn about Freya, it has tainted my impression of her (which sucks because I was really enjoying the book, I haven't yet decided if I will finish it). It's hard to really throw myself into her life when at my core I have a problem with someone whose message has the root of hate in it. I think you bring up another good point, at some level we need people who have displayed hurtful behavior to acknowledge their own darkness. We need to see some remorse or it makes forgiveness difficult (or impossible). Especially true in the case of war criminals.

This issue has happened many times in my reading travels, more recently with the author Osho, who wrote some beautiful enlightened words but in real life was a cult leader who had regular sex with his followers, in an obvious case of misuse of power. Yikes.

k.

On a separate note, once again, as always, your entry itself was beautiful. Your mother must be so proud of you if she can see you now inspiring others and living your dreams.

My mom used to tell me to be weary of friends who were really nice to me but would talk trash about others and treat others disrespectfully. I put Freya Stark in that same category. Yes, we all have our dark sides and need to know whats in there but she was never interested in exploring it, only projecting it onto Jews and feeding the flames that Jews are once again responsible for so many of the world's problems. She died never apologizing or learning from the legacy of hate she helped to spread. Everyone has adventure in them. I guess I just lose interest in a woman who never owned her own darkness.

This was one of the most lovely blog entries I've ever read.
Delightful.

My fiancee plays violin, so I loved your story. Of course, I love all of your stories. :)

a beautiful entry. thank you for sharing.

Keri,

This is an interesting question you are putting out there, do you maybe want to start a new entry/thread on it?

It is an important one, too, as you are right, most of us do have some kind of dark side and I guess its extend depends on the depth of personal involvement and experience?

In the case of someone you admire I would definitely research this so that you can make an informed choice as to whether it changes your view of that person or whether you can understand and accept it.

Personally I would always try to understand and put into context, even with complex subjects such as anti-semitism and racism. Because only through understanding can we affect change.

Thanks for the skirt entry, by the way, as always you touched something inside.

Take care, Kerstin

update:
I did a google search and found several articles talking about Freya's anti-Zionist stance and propaganda.

It seems sad to me that a woman who traveled the world, spoke 7 languages, made a living out of learning about and understanding different cultures would be so exclusionary in her political beliefs (or should I say religious beliefs?).

So I put this out there...

as a reader of biographies (and as humans), do we discredit someone who has lived an interesting and powerful life and contributed much to our own learning and growth when we discover a hurtful and disturbing dark side, one that we were unaware of?

Do we all not have our own darkside?

Or do we look closer at it and try to understand it's reasons for existing? Thereby making peace with the thing that is hurtful?

"Passionate Nomad' is a book that I started reading this week. I posted it on the sidebar.

I am drawn to Freya Stark for her sense of adventure and her courageous spirit, she was one of the first women to venture into remote parts of the world alone. There has been no mention or reference to anti-Semetism in the biography at all. In fact this is the first I have heard of it.

Candace, I am curious as to what your source is. Is it found in her writings? Or is it just a known fact about her as a historical figure?

Candace, I'm afraid your note lost me. Passionate Nomad?

The subject of Passionate Nomad was another masked anti-Semite. Often times I wish people who say they don't support Israel would just speak the truth: They don't like Jewish people period. One of the things that Stark was most passionate about was her hatred of Zionism. She was also a masked anti-Semite.

Having also recently lost my mom, I can relate to this story in a big way. Thanks for sharing; I'm glad to were finally able to wear it and enjoy it--that is a gift.

What a beautiful story and what an awesome skirt...magical in a way. :)

i love this story keri.... i just moved across country from my mom and i've really been missing her. this post actually made me feel a little better, thanks for sharing.

I think you must have air conditioning. That skirt looks toooooooooooooo warm. Shorts/tanktop/flipflops, that's my uniform.

I love your story and all of my denim skirts do too! My mom wore denim skirts, loved dancing and always looked her best in her uniform of the day..denim skirt, t-shirt and her pink thongs.

thank you for your wonderful stories. this one in particular pulled my heartstrings. the world can be so magical sometimes, the way it helps us along with little beauty marks.

What a lovely story, and what lovely thoughts!

Such a sweet story, how life can surprise us with such beautiful things: a violin player, a kind hearted cab driver... I was at B&N this evening, and I searched for your book and could not find it! I like feeling a book before I purchase it, rather than ordering it online. But, now I'll click through to Amazon from your page and purchase it that way instead.

i love this skirt story... it's perfect. you captured what it feels like to wear this skirt so completely, all the while paying tribute to your mom.