Rescuing Van Weyden

Abstract

This work, submitted to satisfy the requirement for a thesis in creative writing at the State University of New York, Brockport, contains short works of fiction and of memoir. "The Smoothness of the Grain" is a study of one's interiority as it manifests without being understood. "Breakfast with Mom in Summer" is a fictionalized recollection of a young boy ' s pleasant morning. "Old Lady Gordon" is a loving remembrance informed by many boyhood experiences. "In Northern Wood" is a poetic recollection of a hunting experience. "Endless Winter" is a retelling of that experience that expresses angst about the author's world that was passed over in the earlier more reverent "In Northern Wood. " "The Fox" is a recollection of a hunting experience that waxes philosophically existential . "The Oswegatchie" is a fictional short story in which the author' s brooding interiority is on display while at the same time being a further celebration of friendship set in the outdoors. "The Sand Woman" is fiction inspired by Kobo Abe's The Woman in the Dunes depicting the awkwardness of strangers (who are forced to coexist) as it transforms into understanding and perhaps something more. Finally, "How I Got Here" is a memoir of the author's pursuit of a life that is purposeful.