–

Heart of the Pool
space

At the heart of the Pool are its sweet characters, quite imperfect, funny, relentlessly honest, and in various stages of struggle and healing. They were born for the most part in my sister Diane Hope’s living room, kind of sideways, during unending bouts of hilarity, as we attempted to deal with our issues. Amazingly, my interpretation of our shortcomings through the characters (both physical and emotional) actually made them quite loveable. Like us, they’d be the first to laugh at themselves.

Diane suffered from severe OCD most of her life and later, as an added bonus, hepatitis C. She passed on July 31, 2008 due to liver failure. It’s tremendously important to me that people understand how much of the Pool is filled with Diane’s heart and muse (it’s not the same in here without her).

Creating Pondering Pool turned out to be very cathartic, not only for me and Diane, but much to my surprise, people throughout the world. Having known and loved someone who many considered to be different and scary, I feel it’s imperative to speak up. I’d love to help erase the stigma surrounding folks who don’t fit the norm, for whatever reason, so what’s noticed are their incredible gifts. As my characters so proudly convey, being different isn’t a flaw, but a blessing.

–

–