Joan L. Cannon

Joan L. Cannon liked to use her middle initial because so few of her maiden namesakes are left anywhere (Huguenot LaPrades). She was retired teacher, retail manager and author of three novels in paperback, Settling and Maiden Run, a collection of short stories called Peripheral Vision and her latest, a collection of poetry, My Mind Is Made of Crumbs, all available from Amazon and on order from independent booksellers.

Joan's most recent novel is Second Growth and can be purchased through Amazon. From childhood, there have been toss-ups for her avocations among reading, riding horses, painting, local flora and fauna and writing.

Editor's note: We were gifted by Joan's vibrant, inspired, writing for the website and plan to revisit her essays often. Joan passed away on October 10, 2017.

Am I Wearing Out My Welcome? "Ad Astra Per Aspera", To the Stars Through Difficulties

Joan L. Cannon wrote: The Internet has become the conduit to confidants I didn’t know I needed, and now I behave as though I couldn’t survive without them. Actually, I doubt if I could. Nowadays I need to remind myself of how easy it’s going to be to overwork my new roster of what I can think of only as friends — real friends in most instances, as opposed to acquaintances. It’s such a temptation to tap out an email whenever a thought strikes me that I know would be of no interest or would be likely to be misunderstood by available ears, or worse, to raise hackles or prejudices that would spoil the relationship on the spot. more »

Why Write? It's Like Everest! - Because It's There

Remembering Joan L. Cannon: I write because I can't help it. A better question would be why can't I help it? First, I need to find out what I know; second, I need to discover what I don't know; third, I need to note what I must not forget. I’m an indifferent amateur painter, and the other visual arts are beyond my talents altogether; I can't perform music. I find I can put words on paper. They can do for me what nothing else can. more »

A Scrim of Memory; A Meditation on Reunions

Joan L. Cannon writes: Think about reunion. Nowadays when the fashion is to press children into adult molds earlier and earlier in their lives, I've heard of kindergarten reunions. My own children were invited to eighth grade ones, and it goes on from there. I went to my own 40th high school reunion and my 50th college one. It was that one that made me swear off that kind of gathering. Every attendee has to face unstated competition as intense as that for college acceptance; it's just based on different criteria. How have I aged in appearance compared with my classmates? Can I match the average for marriage, number of children, implied income, social status, renown? more »

Lucky or Ordinary? Burdened With All I’ve Known and Now Can No Longer Recall As I Wish

Joan L. Cannon writes: Take for instance, the preoccupation with the names of things, that was so essential to my father, and that I've retained, yet can't recall whether I ever consciously tried to pass on. Even my dearest companion was somewhat afflicted with this (I hope minor) obsession. And why does it loom now so large as a matter of consequence to my bumbling consciousness? Even wrote about it for SWW (Renewing Respect for Language: The Subjunctive Is a Governor of the Consciousness That Uses It). Did I fail in a relatively simple matter of pointing out things to our children? Do any of them care half as much as we did? more »