aMusings

Susie Pierce Marshall Full disclosure: (does this raise your suspicions; parenthesis and “full disclosure” at the outset?) the title woman of this essay, Susie Pierce Marshall, is my first cousin. We were both born in 1952, and have been on good terms ever since. Can I possibly write objectively about her? I hope to surprise you. Susie’s father, my mother’s oldest brother, was central casting’s memorable character. How would a son of his turned out? Lenny and Helen raised their only child in northern Maine, long winters included. Their home and barn always in yellow, the barn always as full of horses as space or money permitted. They loved their daughter, lived two productive lives, and drank too much to “take the edge off” – a phrase I first heard from him. Lenny was profane, especially for the ears of the Winchester Kittredges. My swear word knowledge clearly accelerated by his unabashed example; his open-ness on sexual matters a full 2 generations ahead of my parents. Susie has received this as most modern women would; she remains appropriate and impossible to embarrass. Lenny’s outspoken politics could not have been more conservative; he being the nation’s final Vietnam holdout. I received the privilege of visiting Helen the final 5 days of her life – for as long as I wanted. She was sharp and frank … as usual. She had no fear of death, was tactful concerning any regrets, and genuinely thankful for my company. I may not have bagged the profound insights I was seeking, but we became closer, it was so worth it. Susie has been as active and productive as her parents. Her skiing impressed her same-aged male cousin. She colleged in Maine, sorority president – cheerleading captain etc., then worked for the Boston Celtics soon thereafter. She was able to diagram and explain their newly emerging fast break offense – the world’s first I believe. And she was cute and fun in addition – this was a cool cousinette! A generation later her fourth daughter would receive a basketball scholarship to BC, meet, and then marry the campus QB – Matt Ryan. But name dropping gets me off purpose here … sorry. Susie’s lifetime achievement in character and viewpoint is my purpose. Susie was positive and supportive long before pop psychology latched onto those twin concepts, and she has taken them much further that pop culture supports. How many have called her a Pollyanna in her lifetime? Not I. An extreme example: someone spills liquid on her shirt, “Oh, it needed cleaning”. The psychological underpinnings of this character trait – a trait without cultural example nor coaching; a trait requiring a different drummer – escape me. But she reaps the harvest now: Susie Pierce Marshall, after a lifetime of application, can only see the positive in others. Either by vibration, habit, conditioning, or self-fulfilling prophecy; this is now all she can perceive, this is all that is shown to her. This is profound. This is a joyful and loved human.