life rattle show no. 1339

Presented on thursday, april 30, 2015

hosted by john currie

featuring

"Grandma's Feathery Grenades and Organic Applies"
by Brandon Kimmel

and

"Trash and Life"
by Shane Driver

tonight's Show

Life Rattle No. 1339 features two special Earth Day stories by new writers Brandon Kimmel and Shane Driver.

This is the second program in a two-part Earth Day series this month. For me, good Earth writing is good place-based writing. Environmental writer Rebecca Solnit calls a sense of place “the sixth sense, an internal compass and map made by memory and spatial perception together.” I believe that by writing about places where things happened we give to others a glimpse at our maps, so that the writing becomes a window toward how we’ve come to make sense of ourselves. The two pieces on today’s program tread gently, fascinating us as much with the people as the settings in which we find them.

Our first writer tonight, Brandon Kimmel, was born in 1994, on the first day of summer, in Toronto, Ontario. He was born as the only child on his father’s side, but the younger of two kids, later to be the middle child of three, on his mother’s side. His father was born in Alliston, Ontario, and his mother was born in Dashiqiao, China. His father left home when he was fifteen to pursue a business career. He eventually ended up as one of the leading private label manufacturers of cat litter and dog treats, globally. His mother left home when she was ten in an effort to escape communist China. She eventually successfully immigrated to Canada in 1993 after spending a few years in Hungary.

Brandon went to elementary school in Etobicoke and public school in Mississauga. During high school, Brandon set his path toward being a doctor, but at university he learned that his true passion lies in botany and biology and decided he wanted to be an environmentalist. Brandon Kimmel is currently finishing his degree in environmental management, while trying to follow in his father’s footsteps and pursue a business specializing in hydroponic greenhouse farming in an equatorial country.

"Grandma's Feathery Grenades and Organic Apples" introduces us to the narrator's grandma, on her farm in rural China, through a Skype conversation. Since Brandon spent time there growing up, he recognizes and describes the place in vivid detail, placing us there. Just as much as he shows us the changes there, such as running water and an internet connection, we see some important things that endure, such as his grandparents’ sustainable farming practices, practices they have used for many years. The piece also captures the lovely bond he shares with his grandma through their dialogue.

Tonight's second writer, Shane Driver, was born in Newmarket in 1982, where he and his family lived until 1990, when they moved to Oakville. After a difficult youth, Driver decided he wanted more out of life and enrolled in college in Peterborough to study business. There, he met his long-time partner, Paulina. After graduation, Driver moved to Ottawa, to earn a marketing diploma. His studies were interrupted when his father died unexpectedly from a heart attack. Driver and Paulina moved back to Mississauga. Work in sales left Driver uninspired. His worst nightmare was to spend his life in a career he hated, as his father had. With the support of his partner Paulina, and his mother Charmaine, Driver returned to school, to university, and found his passion—writing. Last year, Shane Driver published his first book, Broken, available on the Life Rattle website.

"Trash and Life" is as much about the people in the story as it is about the garbage they clean up. His writing does much, without it ever feeling like he’s trying to impress. The two-way respect shared by the narrator with the girls makes this piece special.