Assignment Week 5

Character Sketch of a Narcoleptic Civil War Re-enactor

It began when Alex was a small child.  Alex could remember hearing his Mother speaking to him, with absolute clarity. Her voice was excited and strained and no matter how hard he tried, he could not respond back to her calling. He awoke later on the floor, his Mother and Father standing over him and fanning him with a paper fan that the funeral home gave to them when his Grandfather died. He awoke thinking….am I dead too?
Since then, Alex struggled with his “predicament” or “disorder”. He was never quite sure when the sleep would overtake him, or how he would manage himself when within the sandman’s grasp, but over the years he had befriended his narcolepsy.  His predicament made him edgy, shy, introverted and unsociable. He only had one friend, Davie Hicks. Alex was constantly seeking Davies approval. It motivated him to join Davie in reenacting Civil War battles.


Story of a Narcoleptic Civil War Re-enactor who sets a house on fire.

Alex buttoned his single breasted navy wool coat and took a step backwards to gaze in the elongated mirror. He smiled at himself. Slowly, he fastened the golden eagle buttons of his officer’s coat, then he gently reached up and smoothed out the epaulettes that graced his wide shoulders. All he had left to do was tie the red sash of an officer around his waist. He took another step back. He looked resplendent.

Alex had anxiously awaited this day for months. He would have the great honor of taking charge of the Officer’s Command Post for the day. Alex had been appointed as the right hand man to General Winfield Scott Hancock. It was post of distinction and one that Alex had campaigned tirelessly for over the last several years. Alex’s disorder, aptly named narcolepsy, often kept him in the shadows. After several years of serving with the General, Alex had gained his trust and confidence.

  The General, nicknamed Superb, was one of the greatest military minds of the Civil War, and Alex was excited to serve as an aide along side the General. Today, they would be reenacting the Battle of Williamsburg. The battle had been recorded in history as one of the most brilliant showings of the military tactical movement s, even in the face of utter defeat. Alex felt his stomach churning with excitement and anxiety. Alex lived his life in the shadows. Today he would not be invisible and the thought of his visibility alarmed his senses.

Alex took one more look at his self in the mirror and then strode down the long staircase of Evelyton Plantation, the site of today’s reenactment.  As he approached the foyer, he could hear Thomas Baxter, a.k.a. General Winfield Scott Hancock, barking orders to several officers who were standing outside the makeshift office. As Alex approached, his friend and comrade, Davie Hicks, turned and smirked at Alex.  Davie was Alex’s only friend, if one could call him a comrade. Davie was privately supportive, but publicly embarrassed of Alex’s disorder. Alex constantly sought Davies approval, but had yet to see it manifest unless they were alone. Alex stopped and checked his costume. Insecurities suddenly overwhelmed Alex and he silently made his way past the officers and out the door to bask in the warmth of the day.

Before he could fully inhale the scent of jasmine floating through the air, he was ordered to return indoors and ready himself for the battle. General Hancock decided that Alex would be the officer who would be in charge of the house and surrounding premises. Alex felt disappointed, but was anxious to prove himself to the General and all his fellow re-enactors. He was confident that today would be the day he earned the respect of all.

After collecting the troops, the officers marched off towards a field near the house to set up their respective campaigns. Alex surveyed the scene from the security of the music room and after a long while, sat down next to the grand piano. He placed his strong fingers on the ivory keys and softly played an old battle hymn his grand mother hummed when he was a child. In the distance, he could hear the battles beginning.

He was not stupid. He understood quite plainly why they had left him alone in the house. They did not want his disorder mucking up their battle plans. They did not want him falling asleep and causing some catastrophe. He felt anger flushing his face. He recalled the last time his disorder had suddenly put an abrupt ending to their plans and he shuddered.

Little did anyone know that he could hear perfectly every word that anyone said while he was experiencing an episode.  The narcolepsy did not effect his hearing. He had heard all of them laughing, cursing and making fun of him as he lay on the cold snow last November.  They wanted him out of their club, so to speak. It was at that moment that Thomas Baxter spoke to the men who had gathered around Alex. He announced to everyone that he was promoting Alex to an officer’s position and if he heard another snide remark, there would be hell to pay. Alex smiled as he remembered Thomas taking up for him.  Alex was also cognizant that his best friend Davie, had been the ring leader of snide remarks. The thought of Davie made Alex sad. He turned his thoughts to the General and felt relief. Thomas was a good man and Alex was determined not to let him down.

He left the music room and headed upstairs to get a better view of the battle field. From the far bedroom, he smelled a faint familiar scent. He entered the room serintipishly. The smell was coming from a small lit candle on the bed stand. He walked over to the bed and picked up the candle. The candle smelled of vanilla and rose. It reminded him of his gentle and loving Mother.

He sat down on the bed while holding the candle in his hand. The wax dripped on his coat and he abruptly  stood up and ran down the hall, candle in one hand, searching for a bathroom. He felt the flame near his face. He smelled the faint scent of burning hair. He reached the bathroom door and set the candle on the sink. Frantically, he grabbed a nearby towel and tried to rub the candle wax off his uniform. Unfortunately, he was only making the stain worse. He then remembered his mother using an ice cube to remove candle wax from the tapestry that hung on the mantle at Christmas. He smiled as thoughts of his Mother swirled within his head. She had always believed in him. She had always held him in high esteem.

As he drifted back to Christmas’s past, he felt a familiar fuzziness pass through him. He clutched the sink and willed himself to the present. The dizziness began and as the room swirled around him, he reached for the candle in hopes that the heat of the flame would ground him and force him to remain steadfast. It did not.

He did not feel the cold floor underneath him, nor did he smell the burning cotton towel as it exploded into flames. He did hear the shouting of voices coming ever closer. He heard them screaming his name as they flew up the stairs and into the bathroom. He tried to form words, but they would not come. He tried to reach out to them, but he could not feel their presence.

He heard the General spewing expletives. He listened as his fellow comrades berated him over and over again. From the deep cave of his disorder, he cried out, yet no one heard him. It was not until he found his self outside on the lawn that he realized the upper floor of the old plantation home was on fire. He sat up stiffly to the shock of realization. He had sat the house on fire. His disorder had once again caused calamity and chaos.

He laid his body back down on the green earth. The smell of burning wood and sweat was overwhelming. Alex felt tears of disappointment and frustration pour down his cheeks. It was in that moment that he contemplated taking his life. It was in that moment, that he looked up to find the General standing over him. The Generals stance was imposing and Alex’s stomach churned at the thought of his punishment.

“Today.” The Generals voice boomed over the crackling fire and unkind voices. “One of our officers has done an unthinkable act.”

Alex grimaced. He would never be able to show his face to his comrades again. He would never be accepted or honored as he had imagined in his dreams hundreds of times.

“Our brother, Alex has given us an advantage over the south and because of his heroic actions, we have won the battle.”

Dead silence. All the officers moved in closer to the General and Alex. Their eyes were transfixed and their mood questionable. Alex took a giant in- breath. He knew he must be dreaming. He had done nothing that bordered on heroism. Due to his disorder, he had set fire to a hundred and fifty year old historic landmark. Where in the hell was the General going with this?

“The south has surrendered.” The General announced as he waved his arm towards the battlefield. In the distance, the southern re-enactors were retreating to their camp. “You see, their plans have been foiled by our young Lieutenant. The South had dispatched an elite squad to capture this officer and take over our command post. If they had, all of our battle plans would have fallen into the hands of our enemies. The timely fire brought our attention back to the house and foiled their strategy. Therefore, we have won the battle today thanks to our brother Alex.”

Again, there was dead silence. Alex looked at the pensive faces that were glaring down upon him. The General bent down to him and slyly winked. Alex sat up a tad taller awaiting his fate.

Out of nowhere came a single clap. He tried to look past the men closest to him to see who had initiated the sound of approval. Then another clap joined in and before long all the officers standing above him were reluctantly clapping. Alex felt relief wash over him as the General gave him a hand and helped him to a standing position. The men came closer and as the clapping continued he felt hands on his back touching him with congratulatory pats. He stood taller with each pat and from the corner of his eye he saw his friend Davie Hicks. Davie was smiling and Alex could see a sense of pride wash over Davies face.

It was the best day of Alex’s life.



Character Sketches for Novel

Characters in Novel- Hanging Elephants
Evangeline (Evie)
Born Sept. 13, 1903

Evie is the narrator of the story and wants more than anything for the truth of her story to finally be told. At one hundred and three years old, she holds a story that will shake the foundation of her family and their past. She tells the story of a year in her life when she was a young girl of thirteen. In the past, many people thwarted her attempts to speak the truth.  She believes that the telling of her secret to her great granddaughter will bring peace to her and to the land and people she loves. Over the years she has encountered much resistance within herself and from others, but at the age of one hundred and five, she finally acquiesces and speaks without editing.

Evangeline (Eva)
Born 1972

Eva has spent her life trying to control everything and everyone. She is a journalist, but her writing lacks imagination and emotion. Her great grandmother asks her to come live in the mountains with her and record an old story that tore their family apart in the early nineteen hundreds. Eva has always been fascinated with her Great Grandmother and has also wondered about her family history. Coming to the mountains of North Carolina to spend time with her Great Grandmother is a leap of faith for her in every way. Her fiancé, Derik, stands in her way. He wants her home to Atlanta. He thinks her quest is ridiculous and is always pulling her away from her destiny. In the mountains, she discovers the truth about who she is. While visiting, she meets someone who opens her up to a world she never knew existed, opening her up to the discovery of herself…and of true love.

Summerland McLaren
Born 1868

Summerland (Summers) McLaren longs for a simple and uncomplicated wife. He was born in Scotland. His family moved to New York City when he was six months old. His family controlled the liquor business coming out of Scotland to the United States; therefore, he grew up wealthy and was educated in the finest schools. Summers always had an adventurer’s heart and when his father died, he left NYC with only a knapsack and took out to discover America. He met up with fur traders in Minnesota and spent time learning their trade…in return…he taught them his…moonshine. He then met up with some Ojibwa Indians and headed south. After many months learning from the Ojibwa’s he found himself in Western North Carolina as a guest of the Cherokee. It was while he was staying with the Cherokee that he met his wife and love of his life, Inola.  They had three children and lived a simple lifestyle. Summers was well respected among the mountain people and was the predominant moonshiner for the area. The revenuers were his greatest threat until his daughter, Aileen, fell in love with a lone wanderer. Her affair of the heart threatened his family and their entire way of life.

Inola McLaren
Born 1874

Inola grew up in the mountains of North Carolina as a Cherokee Indian. She grew up living a simplistic lifestyle with her Grandparents and several other family members who escaped removal by the Trail of Tears in 1838. She spent her time learning the Medicine Ways from her Grandparents. When she was a young girl of twelve, she was courted by many young men, both White and Cherokee. She was stunningly beautiful and had an air of grace and compassion that followed her everywhere. One day, another group of Cherokee passing through the area, asked to spend the night with Inola’s Grandparents. With the group, was a young white adventurer called Summers. Inola recognized Summers when she first met him as she had dreamed about him since she was four. They immediately fell in love and were married when Inola was fourteen years old. Summers became an accepted member of her family and the mountain folk around them also accepted him into their lives.  At fifteen, she had her first child, Arabella.  Then they had two other children Aileen and Alaister.  They lived a simple life until events began to spiral out of control.

Aileen McLaren
Born 1898

Aileen was the last born child of Summers and Inola and after the death of her sister, Arabella was their favored child. Like her mother, she was beautiful. She had the dark skin of her Cherokee mother, but she had the red hair and green eyes of her Scottish father. Most of her life, Aileen dreamed of leaving the mountains and of living the life of a well bred lady. She despised her heritage and most of all her dark skinned Cherokee ancestry. She was teased relentlessly about her appearance by all the young ladies in and around the area. However, the young men were taken by her and she used her charms to wiggle her way into many social events in the neighboring town of Erwin TN. It was there that she fell in love with and was engaged to marry an up and coming young lawyer and son of a notable family.  Aileen thrived on the attention she received whenever she was on his arm. However, one evening, a young traveler came to her parent’s home in the mountains and with his coming, her life would forever change. In the end, she fell in love with all she despised and it cost her ….her life.


Synopsis of Novel---Hanging Elephants

This book will be rooted upon a true story that happen in the small Eastern Tennessee town of Erwin. On Sept. 13 of 1916 the town of Erwin gained the dubious distinction of being the only place in the world to ever hang an elephant. The novel will weave the background of the mountains peoples, the native Cherokee Indians, the town of Erwin, the hanging of Mary the Elephant and the hanging of a rover who passes through the area when the circus comes to town. It will be told, using flashback, by a one hundred and five year old woman to her great granddaughter. The Granddaughter’s present day life will also have threads that interwoven in the past.
The major protagonists in this novel are the times and the people themselves. Prejudice prevails in this small community and the people are motivated by fear…fear of loss of lifestyle…fear of people who are different from them and religious fears.
The family in this novel is effected by the prejudices of the community and the prejudices within their own family structure. It weaves together two major events…( The hanging of an elephant) and ( the hanging of two of the characters) to illustrate the long lasting effects of fear and prejudice.

I live in the mountains where the story takes place and I have heard many tales of this land and believe they long to be told.