Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

I have read many novels over the years and the majority of them have had some sort of influence on me in one way or another.  Without question, the one book that influenced me the most is James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

I remember when I read the book for a literature class years ago that is was unlike anything I have ever read before.  The way the story is told changes with changes the main character experiences.  I don't know if I can even describe why I even enjoyed it.  It wasn't so much about what the novel was about; it was more about the incredible way Joyce told the story.  It was how reading the book made me feel about myself.

The book describes the life of Stephen Dedalus a fictional alter-ego of Joyce himself.  The book takes place in Ireland during the turn of the twentieth century.  The novel tells how Dedalus starts to question the conventions of his Irish Catholic background and how those conventions put restrictions on his life.

To me, the book is about what it takes to become your own person.  Joyce is saying that the only way for a person to be truly free is that they must remove ties to family, church and state.  When I first realized that was what the book was about it initially seemed overly harsh.  The more I though about it; the more I realized that may be the most honest thing I have ever read.  To me the book is about you can choose how much influence you let others have over you.  Be that your family, church or your country.  You choose how much or how little.   In my opinion that is a very powerful message.

My Father-in-Law

This post is going to be about my father-in-law Lorenzo.  The reason I'm writing about my father-in-law is because I think his story is unique and very interesting.

Lorenzo was born in the Philippines in 1925.  He is currently eighty six years old.  He is from Dagupan City which is located north of Manila in the Pangasinan province.  He currently lives in Lakewood California.

Since he was born in 1925 that means he lived in the Philippines during World War II.  Japanese soldiers occupied the Philippines from 1942 to 1945.  That means Lorenzo was seventeen to twenty years old during the Japanese occupation.  I can't help to wonder what that must have been like.  When I have asked him about it he said you had to be very careful.  You had to make sure you were never in the wrong place and wrong time.  That just going to the market could be a very dangerous affair.  For a period of time he had a strong hatred for the Japanese people.  That has changed over the years as he has gotten older after the realization that the soldiers occupying his home did not represent the civilian population of Japan.

After World War II he joined the U.S. Navy, young men from the Philippines were allowed to enlist in the U.S. military after the war.  That was how he was able to become a U.S. citizen.  He served for over twenty years.

After retiring from the Navy in the early 60's he started a different career, actually two different careers.  He worked at McDonald Douglas, which was bought out by Boeing, and at California State University of Long Beach.  He worked those two full time jobs for over twenty years.  That's right, twenty years with an eighty hour work week.  Several years before he retired from those careers is when I met his daughter.

I don't think it would be fair to say that initially I was his favorite person in the world.  As I remember it, I don't think he liked me at all.  That is a whole other story in itself.  I have been married to his daughter for twenty six years and have known her for over thirty six.  I have known Lorenzo for the bulk of those years.  It wasn't easy for me in the early years.  Man was he strict.  We get along very well now.  Let's just say I've put in my time.

I have never met anyone who worked so hard without complaint for the benefit of his family.  I have only deep respect for him and can't wait to visit him again and listen to another story.