Heroine.
Posted: May 10, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 2 CommentsI have dim memories of Isaac Pelepko from growing up. He was a few grades above me. His mother was the librarian at St. Mary’s, my elementary school. He kept to himself a lot, but had a rumored legendary artistic ability—even better than mine!—which earned my envy and curiosity.
Twenty years later, I find him on Facebook. He’s an artist living in New York. I devour the albums of his work that he posts online. And then I get to one portrait of a woman in profile, and I stopped cold:
This is Meena.
Meena is the heroine of my novel, The Girl in the Road. As soon as I saw this picture, I knew it was her—with cornrows instead of a slipknot, but otherwise, her.
I asked Isaac if I could buy it from him. Though I couldn’t really afford it, I felt strongly enough about it that I needed to make the sacrifice. Right now it’s rolled up in a mailer on my art desk, waiting for the 18 x 23 black frame to arrive. But I take it out and unroll it almost every day, just to have another look. She is, unmistakably, my heroine.
Isaac is an incredible artist. Go check out his work.
Wow! How cool! Isaac is soo talented. How great that you not only have one of his pieces and that it means so much to you. I am constantly amazed how that little school in Lebanon PA held so many talented artists within those walls. So proud of you guys.
Isn’t it, though? I love that my first piece of art is from an old classmate at St. Mary’s…and I’m sure we never exchanged two words back then : )