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Friday, December 5, 2014
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
CHARACTER INTERVIEW: Tommy from the Mason Jar Series
Tommy, you’re on the front page of every
newspaper around here. This one says: THE MAKING OF A HERO. You've had a
challenging couple of weeks running from hit men and trying to stop their human
trafficking ring. What were you thinking when you saw that there were girls in
the back of your semi-truck?
I was shocked. I couldn't believe what was
happening to them was real.
Why did
you go to such effort to help them?
Nobody should live in a cage, and whoever put them there needs to suffer a long time.
Would you
have gotten involved if you had known how much trouble you’d get into?
Yes. When I saw them I kept
thinking, ‘What if they were my sisters?’ I just had to do something to help
them.
Tell me
about your family. What was it like growing up in Mexico?
My dad was a mechanic and my mom
had a jewelry store on the beach. When I was really little my older sister and
I collected seashells from the tide pools for Mama’s business. I was about four
when I started helping Papa in his auto body shop.
So is
that what you enjoy doing in your spare time, working on cars?
I work on cars full time. I like
doing it and I've always been good at it. If
I had spare time, I’d be at the beach surfing.
Why did
your family come to the US?
Cartels are running a lot of good
people out of Mexico.
What was
the worst day of your life?
I had three “worst days”. The first
was when my parents got into the car accident that killed Papa and left Mama brain damaged. The
second was finding those girls in cages, and the third was leading the traffickers’ hit men to Ashten’s house. I couldn't live with myself if Ashten or any
of her family were
killed because of me.
killed because of me.
I hear you and Ashten are close. Is
there a future for you two together?
She’s the best thing that ever
happened to me—that’s all I can say about that now.
Did she
tell you about Irlen’s lenses and Scotopic Syndrome?
Yeah.
So these colored
lenses you’re wearing, what do they do for you?
When I
wear them letters don’t move. Who knew something like that could help people
read?
Okay, my
last question. Who do you look up to as a role model and why?
My papa. He taught me to honor my word, take
responsibility for my actions, and to work hard for what I get. He showed me
how to survive and provide for a family and go without when they needed
something.
***
Thank you Tommy!
Learn more about Tommy in the Mason Jr Series
Whoever heard of a kidnapper with a sense of honor?
How could trying to do the
right thing turn out so wrong?
Tuesday, December 2, 2014
Writing During the Christmas Season
Writing during the Christmas season is a little bit like writing while skiing.
I've never been skiing myself, but I've seen plenty of it on television to know that it would be pretty difficult to write with pen and paper, or even pushing the buttons of a laptop, while gliding and then crashing down the slippery slope.
And you know, writing during the Christmas season is a bit like that.
But it doesn't have to be.
I purposely slow things down in December so that I have time to take in the sights, the smells, and the many errands that press upon me. And it's interesting, you know?
Through all of this busyness that occurs every December, I still have moments here and there to write. And I try to use every moment I can.
1. In the evenings instead of watching television.
2. During the morning when the grand kids are at school and the house is peaceful.
3. During awkward times like at stop lights and doctor visits.
4. Have you ever sat in front of the Christmas tree and taken it all in, notebook in hand? Christmas music can spark old as well as new memories; moments that you'd thought to have forgotten.
5. I know I won't have long strips of time this season, because I had few the last. But what I do know is that the season, no matter how I decide to live it, will provide for me hefty material to work on one of my future projects.
And that's ultimately what writing (in any season) is all about.
I've never been skiing myself, but I've seen plenty of it on television to know that it would be pretty difficult to write with pen and paper, or even pushing the buttons of a laptop, while gliding and then crashing down the slippery slope.
And you know, writing during the Christmas season is a bit like that.
But it doesn't have to be.
I purposely slow things down in December so that I have time to take in the sights, the smells, and the many errands that press upon me. And it's interesting, you know?
Through all of this busyness that occurs every December, I still have moments here and there to write. And I try to use every moment I can.
1. In the evenings instead of watching television.
2. During the morning when the grand kids are at school and the house is peaceful.
3. During awkward times like at stop lights and doctor visits.
4. Have you ever sat in front of the Christmas tree and taken it all in, notebook in hand? Christmas music can spark old as well as new memories; moments that you'd thought to have forgotten.
5. I know I won't have long strips of time this season, because I had few the last. But what I do know is that the season, no matter how I decide to live it, will provide for me hefty material to work on one of my future projects.
And that's ultimately what writing (in any season) is all about.
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