I recently visited Jack London Beauty Ranch State Park and spent time in the House of Happy Walls (built by his wife Charmian after his death), which houses the Jack London Museum and is full of books and artifacts of their life together. A short hike brought me to the haunting ruins of Wolf House which was destroyed by fire right after completion (see photo below).
Jack was a traveler and adventurer. After almost starving to death as a gold miner in Alaska, he decided to become a writer and wrote profusely: short stories, plays, sonnets, jokes, ballads and songs. He finally hit gold with The Call of the Wild in 1903.
Photo Credit: JL Henker
A socialist, Jack was committed to issues of social justice. He wrote about poverty, injustice and the exploitation of workers. I was surprised to discover that in 1908, he published a dystopian novel about a wealthy oligarch who takes over the US government and brutally suppresses any dissent. A revolution ensues to restore democracy. (Was he was also a psychic?)
His book is considered one of the first examples of modern dystopian fiction.
In 1905 he purchased a 1000 acre ranch in Glen Ellen, California. He studied agriculture and worked to make the land profitable. While not successful, his methods are now considered examples of sustainability.
His spirit and vision as an adventurer, ecologist and successful writer calls to me. It was an honor to learn about his life and be able to browse the collection of his first editions in the museum. His life was short and did ‘burn out in a blaze of glory,’ but his inspiration lives on in his books and at his beloved ranch.
Photo Credit: JL Henker
“I would rather be ashes than dust!
I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot.
I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.
The function of man is to live, not to exist.
I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them.
I shall use my time.”
Jack London
J.L. Henker, Author 