The River is simple. You start at A. That’s when you enter the River. You end at Z. That’s when you pull off the River. And everything that happens in between A and Z, between entering and leaving, is the flow of life for however long A-Z takes. That’s the River. As I said, it’s a simple thing.
A and Z can be anything. A can be when you’re born and Z when you die. A can be getting out of bed this morning and Z falling asleep tonight. A can be when you start working at a particular job or company and Z when you resign, retire, quit, or get fired. A can be when you said your marriage vows and Z when your marriage ends. A and Z can indeed be anything.
I also think A and Z pertain to more than individual people. The River runs for any group, for a collection of people, for a community of people, whether you define it as a city, an organization, a region, a nation.
A to Z can also be an event. US Air Flight 1549–the one that emergency-landed in the Hudson River in early 2009–was an A-Z that lasted eight minutes. The Battle of Gettysburg was an A-Z that spanned three days. The smallpox epidemic of 1721 in Boston stretched over nine months as an A-Z. And so The River goes.
The River is how I conceive of everything I now do at Historical Solutions LLC. You’ll pick up references to it on my blog and in other of my writings. My presentations usually feature a summation of The River construct somewhere in my material. I often hand out content on The River, elaborations of my construct in more detail. For those of you who have engaged my Creative Conversation service, you’ve been immersed in The River, both yours and that of a historical figure. I’m a believer in The River.
I invite you to explore this section of my website and to contact me with your own thoughts on The River. Call or text me at 317-407-3687 or email me at dan@historicalsolutions.com
