Who knows where the time goes

No, this is not a painting of me .... although I have been seen like this a few times over the years.

 

Rather, this is an artist's impression of Otzi the Iceman just before he died. The uncredited painting appeared in yesterday's edition of the London Daily Mail along with a lengthy article.

 

But, this post is not about Otzi, whose well-preserved, mummified body was found in 1991 in the Ötztal Alps between Austria and Italy. It has been determined he lived between 3400 and 3100 BCE. Otzi interests me a great deal, both as an individual and as a representative of his era, which is the late Neolithic Period about the time the Bronze Age was beginning. We shall leave his story for another time, so to speak, possibly even for another lifetime.

 

No -- this post is about New Year's Resolutions .... sort of, anyway ....

 

Sort of New Year's Resolutions

 

I have decided it is time to get serious about lessening my possessions, and guns are about the easiest to unload. When my son was here at Thanksgiving, I gave him nine firearms to take home with him: Five rifles, two with scopes; a shotgun; a revolver; two semi-automatic pistols. Three or four or five more will be going home with him at Christmas. Redistribution of my "baggage" is Resolution No. 1.

 

When George H.W. Bush died (Bush the Elder, in my lexicon), television commentators noted that Bush once was asked how he could take both political wins and defeats so graciously. His reply was that each day is a new day and when he awakened in the morning, he made sure his attitude was set to reflect a happy, pleasant frame of mind. I think I will give that technique a try, although I am certain Ambrose "Bitter" Bierce will roll over in his grave. To begin each day thankful to be alive and to display it is Resolution No. 2.

 

My reading habit has been slipping away from me during recent months, but I think I have found a tale which will raise the level of my enthusiasm for books a significant notch. I just ordered a copy of, "Lost Secrets," by Bernard Grisoni. It is a new novel about Otzi, the so-called Iceman. He was murdered, it would seem, about 5,000 years ago. Grisoni's story weaves Tesimo's (Otzi's name way back when, according to the novel) life and travels with those of archaeologist Sophia Bruckner, who was among the first to examine the mummified body.

 

One reviewer described the novel in this manner: "'Lost Secrets,' is one of the rare books that appeals to both the left and right brain, and delivers two complementary stories to delight each. Right-brainers will enjoy the modern-day story where a heroine and a hero uncover important historical information while in the midst of a fast-paced adventure to thwart a villain. Left-brainers will enjoy the story that takes place 5,000 years earlier where a pair of men displaced from their home experience people, places and ideas of which neither ever dreamed."

 

This novel explores the intertwining destinies of Sophia and Tesimo, two seekers living thousands of years apart. To actually read this book rather than merely add it to my growing stack of "unreads" is Resolution No. 3. I just might even write a review of the book.

 

And .... I probably will add one or more resolutions to my list before 2018 disappears into history and 2019 emerges from wherever years await their moment in time ....