“Living in the Wonderful” celebration
Albertans born and raised are becoming increasingly rare. Albertans who have lived their entire life on one piece of land are approaching endangered species status. Marilyn Halvorson is one of these rare birds. Except for university and three years teaching in another town — which don’t really count so much as living but existing, waiting for the weekend so she could get back to the ranch — home has been on the same land she came to as a newborn.
Marilyn grew up close to this land and came to see all the growing things and, of course, the animals as a part of the universe with every right to be here, sharing the bounty of the land. Like her parents before her, she resisted clear-cutting woodland or eliminating every wild animal that might possibly be a nuisance of any kind. So it is, that much of her land remains in its natural state and is the home to countless fascinating creatures, great and small, wild and tame.
Marilyn’s 20 years as a teacher also saw the beginning of her writing career. Inspired by her students, she pursued a long-time interest in story writing and was fortunate enough to win a contest. Part of the prize was publication of her first Young Adult novel, Cowboys Don’t Cry, which was later made into a movie that premiered at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Since then she has published 11 more Young Adult novels and one non-fiction journal: To Everything a Season.
Her most recent book, Living in the Wonderful, takes the reader on a tour through Marilyn’s journals, sharing the special times, the hard times — all the times that make up the mosaic of “the Wonderful.”
Marilyn is available for speaking engagements. Learn more here.
Contact Marilyn by email.