Angela Lansbury as Mrs. Polifax in the 1999 TV movie The Unexpected Mrs. Polifax. Other actors have also played this character, but Angela is how I always pictured the character when I read Dorothy Gilman’s books.Surprise is the greatest gift which life can grant us. – Boris Pasternak
The Write Words
One of my favorite authors back when I was trying to figure out life, which of course I still am, was Dorothy Gilman and her Mrs. Polifax series. For those of you who haven’t read any of the books, Mrs. Emily Polifax is a white-haired widow who adored hats, had a brown belt in karate and worked for the CIA as a spy.
Life”s surprises are a gift, like a butterfly that unexpectedly appears. — Art by Pat Besn.
What I liked about Gilman’s heroine was that no matter how difficult a situation she found herself in, she was always hopeful she would find a surprising way out of her difficulties.
Reading back journals, I discovered I often used the character’s dialog as quotes. The gist of the one I remember best is that life is not like setting a table where everything can be placed exactly like you want. I thought about this on reading this month’s prompt from my online writing circle, which is: Write about a journey you’ve been on where you got sidetracked and ended up with a much more fulfilling outcome.
My second thought was: just my whole life.
Dreams I had of how my life would go – to quote one of my grandmother’s favorite sayings – went to hell in a handbasket. Other dreams turned out better than I could ever have imagined, even though they bumped forward on a rocky path with many detours along the way.
Looking back, I’m glad life didn’t go the way I had planned. It wouldn’t have been nearly as interesting.
Bean Pat: https://lithub.com/alice-walker-on-writing-dancing-and-bursting-into-song/ I loved this.
Pat Bean is a Lonely Planet Community Pathfinder. Her book, Travels with Maggie, is now up on Amazon at http://tinyurl.com/y8z7553y Currently, she is writing a book, tentatively titled Bird Droppings, which is about her late-bloomer birding adventures. You can contact her at patbean@msn.com
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Life is Not a Table Setting – So Agree! Life is AN ADVENTURE! Happy Day – Enjoy 🙂
I love your butterfly and daisies! And I love Mrs. Pollifax, too – I have Dorothy Gilman’s books in paperback and frequently re-read them, especially when I need a psychological lift. Her non-Mrs. Pollifax books are great, too – Thale’s Folly, The Clairvoyant Countess, and Kaleidoscope are some of my faves! 🙂
I’m thinking about rereading the Polifax series Diane. And I have read her other books too. I went looking for anything by Dorothy Gilman. It’s nice to know someone else likes this author too, and for the same reason I do.