Thoughts and Ramblings: Trick or Treat; Samhain and Día de Los Muertos; Coco; the Sleeping Knights; Blood of the Innocent; Author Tim Collins; and It’s Time for You People to Click on a Link.

Trick or treat is tomorrow, and I’ve already shared my oral history of that damn kid on 19th street in Port Arthur. Back then, someone was putting razors, poison, and probably bits of glass in Halloween candy. My father warned me about this, and he was there to eat all the suspected candy so I wouldn’t die. Thanks, dad, but you’re eating all the good stuff. I still think that I was robbed.

For me, Halloween always means, Samhain, the Celtic holiday to remember our ancestors and those who have passed. El Día de Los Muertos also has these qualities. Both symbolize the love for those who came before us and our determination to keep their names alive. Because, in the end, that’s what most humans want—to be remembered. As humans, we try our damnedest to keep the names of our loved ones out there. This is why the pyramids were built. It’s also why a loved one will put out a few articles on the deceased’s grave when the family can’t afford a headstone; they honor them by placing things that their loved one enjoyed in life. Most will see them as garbage, but it’s love.

The Disney movie Coco did an excellent job of showing this. I will always treasure that film because it hits you in the heart, or at least it hits mine, because most people tell me I have no soul, so at least I’m good in the heart department. Except my doctor tells me otherwise. It reminds me of my mother-in-law. I know mothers-in-law get a bad rap from some people, but in my case, she was a rock determined to live her own way. This is why I dedicated my first book to her. Would she be happy with its contents? Probably not; the gesture, maybe.

Another story about wanting to be remembered comes from fiction, but it fits perfectly with who we are as humans. Japanese writer Reki Kawahara, who wrote in season two of the Anime Series Sword Art Online, put out the story of the Sleeping Knights. To round up the story in a few sentences, Sword Art Online was an online network where people could compete based on their swordsmanship. It was an online game you could be a visual part of, but the Sleeping Knights were different. In the story, they were hard-wired into the game 24-7 because they were kids in hospice. In other words, they had no future in life, so the game helped them to forget their inevitable demise. One of the characters was named Yuuki Konno, and she beat the best players. As a player who was permanently wired in, she learned her skill well and defeated everyone in her path. Her role in the game was to win a tournament and get to the upper levels so that all the Sleeping Knights would have their names engraved on a wall. As the story unfolded, the Sleeping Knights were helped by another character, and they eventually won, but Yuuki’s health worsened. She eventually died, but not before she managed to get everyone on her team to be remembered. Yuuki never wanted those in the game to find out the truth about her illness, but the main characters discovered it and made sure that all the non-Sleeping Knights were there to show her that they cared for her deeply. Yuuki had lost hope in humanity, but a few individuals were there to show her that her life had meaning and she was loved.

In 2013, I published a book called Blood of the Innocent. There is a sequel, but I just don’t have time to finish it. In the story, I brought all the characters over here from England because I know our history and area. I could have easily left them in their element, but I didn’t want to write about something I don’t know. The book is available on Amazon, and you can read it for free if you are a Prime member. I have a few signed copies available on my website, and there are a few signed copies at the Art Studio (all the money goes to supporting TASI).

Tim Collins 2013 at the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Sabine Pass

As I’ve mentioned before, we’ve lost, or at least I have, many friends and colleagues this year. I found out today that Tim Collins—author/librarian/historian/all-out great guy who loved SETX history and his rich Irish heritage—died in April. He was from Galway in Ireland and pretty much did all the research on Richard Dowling of the Battle of Galveston and Sabina Pass fame, who was also from Galway. I met Tim in 2013 at the 150^th Anniversary of the Battle of Sabine Pass, and he was a joy to be around. I’m also lucky to have his signed book about Dick Dowling. Tim was special to all who knew him. I got so fed up with most people on Facebook that I never checked it, so I missed the word of his passing. I’m sorry for missing it, but to be honest, I’m only on Facebook because some of you people are too lazy to click on a website link, but I digress.