It Started as a Twitter Hashtag...

A friend of mine posted a list of Ten Guys That Influenced My Worldview yesterday.  I took up the challenge and compiled my list and posted them.  Then I got to thinking.  There were a few important guys I left out.  There are also at least ten women whose ideas and work have influenced my world view, too.  Time to put on the thinking cap and give some credit where credit is due. 
First, here's the list I put on Twitter:
Ten Guys Who Influenced My Worldview:

Charles A. Clark, Sr.  My Pop.  First man in my life, and the one I tried hardest not to disappoint.

His eyes were an amazing shade of blue.  (A certain actor we all know has eyes that color...)

Bishop Steven Charleston.  He was interim Dean at our cathedral, St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral in OKC.  He has written two books made up of his daily Face Book meditations.  They are very powerful books.  The daily meditations are straight from his heart, and they speak volumes about the relationship between humans and God and humans and each other.  Hope As Old As Fire, and Cloud Walking, both available at redmoonpublications.com  The man himself influenced our whole congregation with his joy in serving God and God's people, and his intensity, and his enthusiasm.  He became one of us very quickly. 

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.  The rhythm of his poetry spoke to me from an early age.  I never had to memorize any of the famous epic poems, but smaller ones, like The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls got themselves into my head and got me started wanting to play around with words myself.

Vincent Van Gogh  One look at one of his paintings, and you know that this man had a unique vision.  He shared what he could of that vision with us using remarkable colors and brushstrokes to give us a glimpse of sublime beauty that goes beyond ordinary reality. 

Michael M. Ornstein  Because he reminded me of the power of art, and spurred me to write more.  He is generous to his fans on Twitter, and responds honestly to honest comments.  He has reminded me that I have something worthwhile to say, and given me the courage to try.

You can see his art at michaelornstein.com

William Shakespeare  If anyone in Western culture today can claim NOT to be influenced by Shakespeare, I'd love to see them prove it.  His influence is all pervasive.  His works are so much a part of our common frame of reference that even those who aren't aware they know any quotes from Shakespeare quote him regularly.  For me, Taming of the Shrew in almost every staging I have seen of it is sublimely funny.  The one play I have seen performed live was As You Like It.  I got to see that one in San Diego, California at the Old Globe Theater that they had built there precisely to  duplicate Shakespeare's theater.  It was home to the annual Shakespeare Festival. 
And of course, as all Beauty and the Beast fans know, Shakespeare knew everything!

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart  Ah, his music is divine.  I love to listen to it, I really love to sing it, even though it is hard work to do so properly.  My voice tends to love the pieces he wrote for lyric soprano, and one of the best recital performances I ever gave was singing his Vedrai Carino from Don Giovanni. 
His music feeds my soul.

Gene Roddenberry, because he dared to dream of humanity united and exploring the stars.  And he took us with him! 
Star Trek opened so many vistas of human possibility for me.  Made me try to think about things from more than one point of view.  Star Trek made all of us look to the stars with hope and wonder, and the desire to learn more.

Ron Perlman, because he has brought so many unusual characters to life and made us believe in them, made us feel we knew them, and made us care about them. 
He is a very good actor.  He is also very funny.  People who are genuinely funny are important to me, because laughter is very healing, and this world needs all the healing it can get.  He banters with fans on Twitter sometimes, and that always makes me smile, and sometimes laugh out loud.

Matthew D. Armistead  The one I married.  The first guy in my age group who looked me in the EYE when he was introduced to me.  A man who loves me in spite of all my weirdness and moodiness, and staying up till all hours writing habits.   The man who has a sense of humor almost as warped as my own.  His sense of duty and service to others and his country impressed me.  I am proud of all the many things he has learned to do and has done for others in his life.  He is also musical, being possessed of a lovely, evil, dark baritone voice.  He was practically raised in the Panama Canal Zone's Theatre Guild.  He has stage managed many plays, acted in a few, and done everything from set construction to property management to running the lighting and sound equipment.  I have seen him overcome obstacles set for him by his own body with far more patience and perseverance than I would ever be able to muster.  He is still my hero, my Knight In Smelly Flight Suit, my Matthew.

OK, those were the ones I put in the top ten list.  Some others I should include are:

Robert Burns.  When I discovered in my youth that we had some Scottish genes in our heritage, I set about learning about Scotland and the Scots.  Robert Burns poetry is a big part of that.  His songs and ballads, such as Ae Fond Kiss,  My Luve Is Like A Red, Red, Rose,  and Afton Water are all favorites of mine.  I learned to hear the dialect in my head when reading his words, and it all began to make sense. 

George Back  The man on the right, our former dean, now retired.  (The guy on the left is our current dean, Justin Lindstrom, and he hasn't had enough time to influence my world view too much just yet...) 
George is all heart.  His love is something that was always just poured out on our congregation.  His steadfast love and optimism during the aftermath of the Murrah building bombing in 1995 is what helped all of us continue in love and faith to get through the rebuilding after that horrendous event.

Edgar Alan Poe  Master of the macabre, weaver of wonderful stories and poems that were just magical.  One of my earliest reading memories is reading The Raven aloud with my Mom.  We also read The Gold Bug together when I was in grade school. 

Of course, no list is complete without Dr. King.  I remember so clearly the day he died.  They were afraid for our safety and sent us home from school early.  One of my classmates' mother knew that my Mom was walking to meet me, but she said  she'd take me to my mom, so I got in the car with her and my classmate.  This lady was African-American, and a minister at her small church.  She had been crying, and she told us "This world has just gone crazy, children.  But we still have to love one another."  She dropped me off when we saw my mom walking on her way to the school.  This lady and my mom had worked together in the PTA.  Doctor King's words live on, and they still inspire us to remember that only love can drive out hate.

Rich Rosenfeld, seen here with his wife Stephanie, who also influenced my world view.  Rich was our chaplain at Rhein-Main Air Base.  He led what he described as "where almost no one has ever gone before"  the 08:30 Protestant Liturgical Service.  (aka the Metholuthepiscoterian Rite.)  Rich and his love of music and bad puns made for some very interesting chapel services.  He and Stephanie and their son David are steadfast friends, always living the faith they profess.  And doing so with a song and good humor!  They introduced us to Black Adder, and to 'Allo, 'Allo. ( For this last we shall have to send them the cracked vase with big daisies and the Madonna with the Big Boobies rolled up and hidden inside a shipment of Knockwurst...)
And don't drop the Christmas Puddings!


The next blog post will be for the 10 Women (plus a few extras) Who Have Influenced My Worldview.