Up North Nature
ROLLING IN THE DEEP by LYNDA WHEATLEY
A former MSU English professor pens a full-color portrait of his longtime love and powerful muse, Lake Michigan.
A
uthor e. fred carlisle grew up in Delaware, Ohio, spent a decade in Appalachian Virginia’s Clover Hollow, and taught at several landlocked universities around the Midwest and even in the Middle East. Though he’s now living back in the mountains of Virginia, Carlisle couldn’t resist diving into Lake Michigan for his latest book, “The Lake Effect: A Lake Michigan Mosaic,” a fluid look at the beauty, history, power and economic impact of the big water, and—for better and worse—humans’ impact on it. Lynda Wheatley: Was there a defining moment or issue that compelled you to write “The Lake Effect?” E. Fred Carlisle: Lake Michigan has been on my mind or a part of me since I was very young. There’s a picture in the book of me, 2 years old, standing ankle-deep in the water on a Lake Michigan beach. It’s always been there in a sense, sometimes consciously, sometimes hidden by the rest of
my life. When I felt that a book might be emerging, I went back to past journal entries, then I wrote separate pieces to see what I felt and thought. I read, remembered and wrote over a year or two. Once I had others read drafts, I realized that I was writing about water as much as about the lake. LW: What’s your favorite spot next to Lake Michigan? EFC: High on a dune looking out over the blue water or sitting at the water’s edge by myself, listening, feeling, imagining. LW: If you could recommend readers do one thing for Lake Michigan, in honor of Earth Day this year, what would it be? EFC: There are many Great Lakes restoration projects. I urge people to learn about them and give political support and—where possible—time and money. And to tell other people about the perils that continue to threaten the lakes. A good source: fws.gov/initiative/ great-lakes-restoration-initiative.
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