Why Flannery?

Why is Flannery over there on the left, where there's usually a saint o' the day? Because today is the 42nd anniversary of her death from Lupus.

I'll be on the fabulous KVSS from Omaha 8:15-9 (Central) this morning talking about her, and the show will be archived. Ignore the part where I say she was born in Milledgeville, please. I attempt a save later by correcting myself - of course she was born in Savannah - I've been to the house, for pete's sake. But my brain just flopped at that moment, for some reason.

Here's the article I wrote on Flannery that I like the best, and the one that put the best letter I ever received in my mailbox (my real mailbox) - from Sally Fitzgerald herself, saying that I "got" Flannery.

Have you ever walked on air?

A couple of Flannery sites:

The Comforts of Home - a respository of writings about O'Connor

The Flannery O'Connor Collection at George College in Milledgeville.

If Flannery Had a Blog...by one of our own.

Where ever you start reading O'Connor, you should have her collected letters, The Habit of Being alongside you as you read. Or frankly, even if you have no interest in reading her fiction, take a look at the letters. What you will find there is helpful, insightful spiritual reading, written in unfailingly good cheer by a woman who was suffering - at least physically - a great deal.

Here's a post I wrote about my last visit to Milledgeville, 2 years ago, including my first look inside the farm house at Andalusia.

There are many profound quotes one could offer from Flannery, but I'll just throw out these two, which, while not spiritual, have given me great comfort and steadiness over the years:

The writer should never be ashamed of staring. There is nothing that does not require his attention.

and

Total non-retention has kept my education from being a burden to me

Cheers...