What You Get
After I retired from the State of Alaska, Peggy and I moved back to property that we had purchased in Izard County, Arkansas. Soon after we arrived, I opened a Kodokan Judo School in Calico Rock, the nearest town to our property.
I hung several small posters around the school that shared ideas I wanted my students to remember. One of them featured a quote by Zig Ziglar:
“What you get when you reach your destination is not nearly as important as what you become by getting there.“
More Than a Black Belt
While that quote certainly applies to earning a Shodan (First Degree Black Belt), I discovered that it also applied to writing and publishing a book.
As I worked on Before We Were Heroes: Southern Fires, I had to make difficult decisions about which stories to include.
Some chapters, such as Sharp County Paper and Hang’em High, contained language that did not reflect the way I choose to speak. I had to decide whether to include them as they happened or find a way to tell those stories without compromising my conscience.
The Lessons Behind the Stories
Other stories including Dad’s Ticket and Something to Help challenged my integrity in different ways.
Then there were stories like One Green Bean and Bank Robber, which were deeply personal and required me to revisit experiences that had shaped my life.
Each decision became part of the writing journey.
What Readers Will Find
From the day I decided to write this memoir until the moment it reached readers, the process taught me lessons I never expected.
Perhaps the greatest lesson was discovering more about myself and recognizing which experiences truly made me who I am.
What you’ll find in Before We Were Heroes: Southern Fires is more than a collection of stories. It’s a glimpse into my life and perhaps, through these experiences, you’ll find yourself reflecting on the moments that have shaped your own.