Welcome to Pilgrimagination!
(To see the latest blog post, click here)
This site is a lot like Emily Dickinson’s bureau drawer. Miss Dickinson composed poetry throughout her lifetime, but rarely showed a scrap of it to anyone else. Instead, she hid her writings in a drawer where they were discovered by her sister — and subsequently published — after Emily’s death.
This is my drawer. What I write, I shove into the drawer from my side: peregrinations, reflections, ruminations, flights of fancy, ponderings, poems, stories in short or serial form. These are the Imaginations of a Pilgrim — the children of a frequently haphazard and sometimes fevered brain.
Unlike Emily’s drawer, mine is open on the back end. I have no way of knowing where these wandering offspring of my consciousness will emerge once I push them inside. At that point, they pass beyond my control. They belong to the uncertain universe of the world beyond. I cannot tell where they will end up or who will see them.
Whoever that person may be, my prayer is that he or she will at the least prove kind and understanding.
Pages
Here’s a listing of the site’s various pages with a brief description of their content. All pages can be accessed via the Home page (simply click on the titles below) or by using the menu bar at the top of the screen:
Posts will fall into one of five categories, each tagged and identified with a distinctive picture-image. These five threads will be randomly sorted and interwoven one with another as we move forward — for example, a couple of “Pilgrim” posts this week, a poem a few days later, a story after that, and so on. Rest assured that there is a method in the madness. The categories are as follows:
1) The Pilgrim Path
In Part Two of John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, Mr. Valiant-for-Truth – himself a veteran traveler as well as a faithful guide to all who choose to walk the Pilgrim Path – sings an unforgettable song:
Who would true valor see,
Let him come hither;
One here will constant be,
Come wind, come weather.
There’s no discouragement
Shall make him once relent
His first avowed intent
To be a pilgrim.
This is the Pilgrim’s Anthem. It’s a declaration of mad intent, an expression of firm resolve, a no-turning-back cry of desperation on the part of someone who sees the necessity of giving up what he cannot keep in order to gain what he cannot lose. It’s a song about hitting the road, striking the right path, and following wherever it leads, even if it leads outside one’s comfort zone and beyond the bounds of the whole known world. This first thread of Pilgrimagination posts is dedicated to all who want to sing that song and take that journey.
2) Stories and Legends
This second thread represents the imaginative element of Pilgrimagination. It’s a venue for the presentation of original tales and narratives of a fantastical or possibly not-so-fantastical character, and perhaps a reflection or two on the fancies of other (and better known) authors and storytellers.
3) Sword & Stone
Sword & Stone is a special sub-category of Stories and Legends. This thread of posts will present The Sword of Paracelsus — a brand-new, never before published sequel to the fantasy novel The Stone of Destiny — in serial form. Follow the adventures of Morgan Izaak and Eny Ariello as they enter the underground kingdom of the Sidhe in an attempt to rescue the Stone Lia Fail from the Morrigu.
4) Poet’s Corner
From time to time the humble author of these pages will venture beyond the bounds of mere prose and offer his readers a sampling of his many unassuming forays into the realm of versification.
5) Quotable Quotes
A sampling of the thoughts of great writers, poets, social commentators, and cultural observers — from Plato to Pascal to Bunyan to Postman — in their own words and taken directly from their own writings.
NOTE: You can view all of the entries in any of the above five categories by navigating to the “Categories” heading in the left margin and clicking on the category name. For example, if you want to read only The Sword of Paracelsus, click on “Categories/Sword & Stone.” If, on the other hand, you’re interested solely in reflections on The Pilgrim Path, click on “Categories/Pilgrim Path.”
The About page offers biographical and personal background information about the designer and author of Pilgrimagination.
A listing of additional books by the author, summaries of their content, and purchasing information.
CDs by the Celtic Mountain Band.
A page specially dedicated to all kinds of background information about the characters, the setting, the themes, and the legendary foundations of the world of The Stone of Destiny and The Sword of Paracelsus.
Hi, I read your blog daily. Your writing style is witty, keep up the good work!
thanks
Who would Jim Ware observe,
this site come hitting;
He here intends to post,
other chores permitting.
No critical reply
Shall make him once deny
The gifts which in him lie
To be a writer.
Love it! I still love listening to THE PILGRIM SONG and the fond memories of our days together in the Passno era of Correspondence at FOF. Keep the posts coming Jim. You are among my favorite writers.