Mark Twain

Sam Clemens, better known as Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist who wrote many classic novels including: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and The Prince and the Pauper.

Twain became a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River and it was this venture that resulted in his pen name Mark Twain which refers to a measured river depth of two fathoms. His first claim to fame came from a humorous story he wrote about the jumping frog contest held in Angels Camp, California. His story was published in a New York weekly, The Saturday Press, and it won international attention and inspired him to continue to write more. Twain not only became a hugely successful writer, but he was also in high demand as a speaker. Over the years his writings and presentations brought him fame.  People of all stations of life, from farmers to American Presidents, knew and appreciated his wit and his creative skill with words.

President William Howard Taft said, "Mark Twain gave pleasure – real intellectual enjoyment – to millions, and his works will continue to give such pleasure to millions yet to come ... His humor was American, but he was nearly as much appreciated by Englishmen and people of other countries as by his own countrymen. He is an enduring part of American literature."

One of my favorite Mark Twain quotes is, “I have been through some terrible things in my life, some of which actually happened.”

One of the things Twain is saying is that oftentimes we get too caught up worrying about what could happen, what might happen, and the what ifs that lead to desolation row. Within our own lives, let imagination be used to envision what is possible and ultimately fulfilling. Imagination can take us to the heights of heaven or the depths of Hades, depending upon how we use it. Life is challenging enough without writing stories in our head of future misfortunes that may never come to pass. We could probably all recall tales of woe that never turned out quite as bad as we had envisioned and a few that did!

Mark Twain’s brother Henry was killed in 1858 when the steamboat he was working on, the Pennsylvania, exploded. Twain had witnessed his death in a dream a month earlier and held himself responsible for the rest of his life. He experienced other devastating personal losses including his wife’s death and the early deaths of his two daughters.

Mark Twain was born in 1835, shortly after Halley’s Comet made its closest approach to earth. In 1909 he wrote, "I came in with Halley's Comet. It is coming again next year, and I expect to go out with it. It will be the greatest disappointment of my life if I don't go out with Halley's Comet. The Almighty has said, “Now here are two unaccountable freaks; they came in together, they must go out together."

His prediction was accurate. Mark Twain died of a heart attack on April 21, 1910, one day after the comets closest approach to earth.