Today is the birthday of Eric Hoffer (1898 – 1983), working-class philosopher, migratory worker, and longshoreman. He became a social writer, grounded in the practical experience of the common worker, and was the author of ten books. Hoffer was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in February 1983. His first book, The True Believer (1951), was widely recognized as a …
Self-confined to my air-conditioned condo in the city this morning, I look at old photographs and write, determined to escape the heat. One photograph set in the Tatra Mountains of Czechoslovakia in 1931, soothes me. It captures a happy moment of my late husband Charles Novacek and his family picnicking in a scenic place, surrounded by their friends …
“Why should I be frightened of dying? I did not know what death truly was; no one did. Who had made dying a bad word? Yes, it was universally considered awful—unwanted, painful, feared—because when it happened it stopped us from moving and being, and we interpreted that as if something had ended. But what if …
“Before I reached the border that day, I made it clear to myself that this would be for keeps. For me, it meant changing loyalty from Czechoslovakia to the United States, having America as my new Motherland. If she needed me, I would die to defend her. I felt that way when I entered in …
