Anti-Nuclear, Historical Memoir, Political Activist

Courage and “mission fortitude”

Dear Betsy,

You may add one more person to your list of readers. I saw your book lying on our dining table and was soon informed by my wife, Natalia, that you had generously given it to her during her stay in your West Seattle home. My interest was piqued by its title, which I could not imagine relating to today’s use of this term. And certainly it wasn’t, as its content quickly revealed.

You seem to be one of these individuals, almost all female, victimized by the patriarchal era in which you lived. Bright, talented, ambitious, and capable of far more spacious boundaries, you mostly played the role of the times. But your spirit was evident in what you did achieve, and your book is testament.

I, too, have a history of a brief residence in Russia, two years for me, in Moscow. Aside from my all-engaging work as an English teacher, I was primarily an ethnologist, exploring the question  of what 73 years of the Soviet experience did to people, not to mention the centuries of servitude under the Czars. As your book makes clear, there is one overarching lesson from foreign immersion. People are people wherever you find them. The aphorism observes that there is a line in human nature below which we are all the same. Big or small, smart or dull, kind or mean, hopeful or fearful, such as we are, are about the same in proportion everywhere on the planet. Aspirations for oneself and for our progeny and friends seem universal, and are heavily driven toward peaceful, supportive, and loving connections between all of us. There is no such thing, under superficialities, as “the Russian character” or the “the Asian nature”. Around the kitchen table, we are all pretty much the same.

The subject of attitude, molded by life, is where we find differences across cultures, and these differences have substantial bearing on the success or failure of entire cultures, judged by those qualities that lead to human fulfillment.

Your writing classes and, as we all experience, your life-long practice in journals and so forth, has made you a pretty good writer. You cleared the bar in my book. I enjoyed your style and frankness. Your story of your work with Target Seattle and the Tashkent sojourns is really quite inspirational and, as I perceive it, took a good deal of courage and “mission fortitude”. You would have made a good US senator or a governor.

With utmost respect and sincere good wishes,

Paul Shelton

Buy Open Borders

Pre-order Open Borders now

Want to be the first to read Open Borders: A Personal Story of Love, Loss and Anti-war activism? The various online ways to order the book are now ready to respond. You can pre-order Open Borders now. I’ve got my very own ISBN 10-1941890210.

Amazon– to place an order through Amazon, open your Amazon account and type in Open Border by Betsy Bell.

If you like to support the independent book sellers, you can go the the Indie books hub and pick your favorite store.

Elliott Bay Books in Seattle has it available for pre-order.

Barnes and Noble has Open Borders in their catalog.

To prepare you for the questions you’ll be asking yourself as you read and finish the book, here is a list of questions for readers found in the back pages. Pondering them may encourage you to read the book with friends and think about the issues beneath the story line.

Open Borders

Topics for Discussion

Open Borders tells the story of direct conversations between citizens of two nations considered hostile to each other. The intent was to break down walls between nations.
• How do you view this type of action in the current political environment?
• How do social media interactions compare to face-to-face conversations?
• Do you believe the actions taken were effective in furthering peace? Nationalism and ethnic isolation are on the rise around the world. The author advocates freedom of movement across international boundaries and the vital importance of human connections between citizens of different nations.
• In our current political environment what challenges do you see to this approach?
• What nations would you put at the top of your list for organized civilian action?
• Would terrorism and personal safety issues prevent you from visiting Russia? Iran? North Korea?
• Do you see value in isolating another nation?
Like many women of that time, the author struggles with her role as a wife and a mother and her desire to have a career.
• Many more women work outside of the home today, but is this challenge a thing of the past?
• Have you or someone you know struggled with similar issues?
Moral purpose guides the author and her husband as they become deeply involved in the local efforts to reduce the nuclear threat between the Soviet Union and the United States.
• What principles guide you?
• Have your principals driven you to unexpected social or political action?
• How have you responded when a principled action puts you into conflict with someone you respect?
• How might you resolve those differences?