Michaela doesn't look like the gypsy traveller she claims to be. Pale as the moon, body rake-thin, hair cropped short and the colour of corn silk, she weaves with gypsy ardor the tale of her Rom origin and her olive-skinned parents. With each new telling, the currents of story and memory shift like the direction of the wind along the open road. Abandoned at an early age, one parent simply packing and leaving, the other suffering an unexpected death, Michaela is raised by her grandparents. Precocious and independent, she runs away for the first time when she is four, and for the final time when she is fifteen. To survive on the street, Michaela scams her way to food and a dry place to sleep. She meets Thomas when she hides out in a seminary library, disguising her female body in baggy clothes, passing time reading books on the lives of the church fathers and saints. A scholar and would-be priest, Thomas thinks he is simply doing a good deed when he invites the runaway to stay with him.  To Michaela, home is not a location. She carries it with her in the  same way she carries her memories. She is always destined to leave.

I am grateful for the many friends who came out to celebrate with me the launching of Tending Memory. As Michaela says, "A gypsy's riches are measured not only in gold, but in friends, and family, and gypsy generosity." 

To view photos of the Kitchener launch party.

(Photos courtesy of Leslie Bamford).

Thank you to Samantha Paul for capturing with her gypsy dancing the essence of the novel's fictional character, Nadja  - "Nadja's dancing arouses the passion of the traveller's stories, the sadness of those who have suffered much along the journey, the freedom of the open road, the independence that is the gypsy's heartbeat." 

Thank you to Gary Kreller for playing the part of the wandering minstrel, entertaining book launch attendees with his music. 

To download and listen to the studio recorded version, with Gary on the accordion and his friend, Verne, on the guitar

 

Thank you to Elaine Auerbach for catering the event and handling the bar in her Smart Serve way. Thank you to her as well for the beautiful gift of a sculpture depicting a scene from Tending Memory, and crafted by Elaine herself, a talented artist.

 

A gypsy toast of gratitude to Betty and Bob Paul for hosting the book signing gathering for family and friends from Eastern Ontario. Courtyard Tearoom in Perth offered a lovely setting and gracious service. Thank you to all who came, bought books, and have subsequently read my story - for in the end, "when all is told and done, riches are measured by the stories they generate. How far the stories travel, and how long the stories live."

To view photos of the Perth signing

(Photos courtesy of Samantha Paul).