* About The Chestnut Point Stories *
by Jackson Tel
In this written narrative series, the jocund storyteller, Jackson Tel, takes us on a rambling journey through the curious history of the Patuxent River Mann Family from colonial times to the Twentieth Century. His peregrinations are full of anecdotes, vignettes, narratives, and the occasional canard, best described as “real whoppers.” The stories are concoctions of history and fiction blended with cupfuls of comedy, ample amounts of adventure, a measure of mystery, and a pinch of the paranormal, all topped with a relish of romance. They feature a hodgepodge of characters plucked, kicking, and screaming out of the historical and cultural mixing pot of the Mid-Atlantic region of America.
While in Jackson’s company, expect to experience many intersections of the past with the present and the present with the future. Be forewarned; spirits and past lives are very real in The Chestnut Point Stories. So, don’t be surprised if you encounter some ghosts in the stories or people who have been reborn many generations or even centuries apart.
Occasionally, the storyteller is confronted by a person who actually lived in the period in which one of his stories takes place who insists on setting the factual record straight.
Jackson always assures them, “Alright, okay, have it your way!”… until the next time, his imagination leads to a conjectural crossroad, ducks down an intriguing side alley, or is drawn into an irresistible wayside attraction. Then, we just might be lured by him off the straight and narrow for who knows how long.
The journey through The Chestnut Point Stories is not linear in the traditional chronological sense. Therein, the present, the past, and the future are intertwined. An analogy might be that the stories are like sailors’ knots in which the storylines are repeatedly twisted, turned, crossed, wrapped around, over, and upon each other until the other end is reached. Thus, the past, present, and future events become interwoven.