Honoring Kurt Vonnegut

I've linked here to my favorite Kurt Vonnegut short story. I vividly remember reading it at the age of 14 -- the same age as the central character in the story. This was almost 30 years ago.

Reading about the parental characters in the story reminds me of my own parents at the time. They were looking out for me. Trying to challenge me, they got me into some special classes at school. It was at one of these classes where we students were given access to books and stories not offered in the regular curriculum. This one kid in class, Tom Pushchak, talked about Vonnegut books...I always considered him the smartest kid at school so I assumed there was something fascinating to be found. I was not let down.

The story of Harrison Bergeron touched me then...and stuck with me my whole life. The symbolism, the imagery, the brief yet powerful events hit me in the gut. Vonnegut was a genius. I'm going to miss him. He had a beautiful vision and knew that through a good story you could make people think differently about the world. He was a master at the most important kind of speculative fiction...the kind that resulted in shaping the minds of young people. I know he shaped mine.

And I think I'm a better person for having read Kurt Vonnegut's work.