"Endurance" Published by The Good Men Project
Today The Good Men Project website published my essay "Endurance," and I can't say enough how thrilled I am about this. The Good Men Project was originally conceived by Tom Matlack and James Houghton as a book of essays written by men willing to open up about their lives as men. (You may have read my own review.) The book was published in November of 2009 and has been well-received an has also expanded into a documentary film. The Good Men Project also includes The Good Men Project Foundation providing educational, social, financial or legal support to men and boys at risk. All proceeds from the sales of The Good Men Project book and documentary film DVD are distributed to the Foundation. I am a huge proponent of The Good Men Project and their efforts. Many thanks to Tom Matlack and editor Larry Bean for including my essay on The Good Men Project's site and for their support of my own book, Sugar Milk. I am very humbled by this opportunity. I hope you all enjoy the essay.
Endurance
When I was a boy, I watched my dad sink an axe blade into his right leg. He was trying to crack a welded join, connecting a pair of fifty-five-gallon barrels, when the axe head ricocheted off a drum and struck him square in the shin. I remember the dull thump of the metal hitting his leg and the bloody splinters of bone hanging from the cut in his jeans; but mostly I remember the calm way in which he went into the house, took a shower, and then drove himself to the hospital. Aside from muttering something about being stupid, Dad never said a word. Still, the pain contorting his face at every jagged step told me how much agony he must have been in.
