The Magical Hamburger

Is there someone whose writing you especially admire and either consciously, or perhaps subconsciously, channel while you are writing?

In my case it’s my grandmother. She died two years before I was born and although I never had the chance to meet her, she left behind more than two hundred letters – letters she’d written about her life during the years she lived in Africa.

More than anyone else, Gladys has inspired both my interest in travel writing and in being a memoirist.

That’s her in the photo above, with a chef’s toque on her head. And what is she doing? She’s serving up a hamburger to Haile Selassie, the last Emperor of Ethiopia. (No, she was not a professional cook and yes, there’s a story behind this – it’s in my book Lions, Peacocks & Lemon Trees.)

It was the first time the Emperor had ever eaten an American hamburger and he wanted the full experience. Gladys noted in a letter that he wanted it, “with all the toppings, please!” He insisted on paying for it, too – even though, being the Emperor, she would gladly have given it to him for free.

It’s the little details like these that speak volumes more than what’s out there about the Emperor in the common vernacular.

I’ve been working on a dual narrative travel memoir of her years in Africa, off and on, for over two decades now. In order to better understand her life, I’ve solo-ed in Ethiopia, Portugal and Italy, retracing her steps, duplicating some of her adventures, and having a few of my own along the way.

Although Lions, Peacocks & Lemon Trees has yet to be published, my grandmother’s writing has taught me a lot. Gladys is the editor inside my head when I’m writing – and in a positive way. She’s both my filter and my inspiration.

At times, I’ve felt she’s looking over my shoulder when I’m reading someone else’s book. I even sense her shock and sharp intake of breath at what some writers reveal on the page these days.

Her directness, her eye for interesting details, her witty self-deprecation, her passion for new adventures, her interest in others, her sense of humor and her lack of naval-gazing (a trend that seems to know no limits these days), have all been my north star, my fundamental ethos and my truest sense of direction.

And how about you, who has inspired your writing?