DAVE VORLAND: It Occurs To Me — Odette And Swann

I took this picture May 31, 2005, of a movie actress taking a break during filming along the Seine River in Paris

She reminds me of Odette de Crécy, an unforgettable character in Marcel Proust’s “Swann In Love,” a component of his larger work “In Search of Lost Time.”

Although Proust died in 1922, “the Search” continues to be read around the world and France regards him as one of its greatest literary sons.

For example, in New York last year Dorette and I noticed the French Consulate on Fifth Avenue is named “Odette” and has a Proust exhibit in its library.

I’ve been re-reading “Swann” as Dorette and I prepare to leave Saturday for Paris with her granddaughter, Avery Dusterhoft. We’ll be in France for 11 days, including May 31.

It should be great, especially for teenager Avery. But can 12 years have gone by since I shot this photo?

DAVE VORLAND: It Occurs To Me — Bois du Boulogne

I shot this photo in Monday of a professional dog walker in the Bois du Boulogne, the large park on the edge of Paris, which figures in Marcel Proust's novel, "A La Recherche Du Temps Perdu." Over my lifetime, I've read this work more than once in English translation (all…

June 8, 2017

In "Unheralded"

DAVE VORLAND: It Occurs To Me — My Favorite Cemetery

Accompanied by Dorette's son-in-law, Paul Kuhns, I'm heading to Paris next week to attend the International Hemingway Conference. I also expect to visit again the most famous graveyard in the world, the Cimetière du Père-Lachaise, established by Napoleon in 1804. The cemetery is huge ― 110 acres ― with more…

July 13, 2018

In "Unheralded"

DAVE VORLAND: It Occurs To Me — Reading James Joyce

Winter in Minnesota is not my favorite season. But there IS one benefit to lousy weather. It provides time to a catch up on the reading you've deferred in order to enjoy being outdoors in the spring, summer and fall. My winter goal is to dip into the literature created…

January 7, 2017

In "Unheralded"