PageOneLit.com: Where did you
grow up?
Mamie L. Smith: I grew up in a rural area, twelve
miles north of Kosciusko, Mississippi. I am the
third child in a family of thirteen brothers
and sisters. My father owned a large farm, and most
of our income resulted from raising cotton. It was a
hard life; but was a life that built character,
determination, and perseverance. Religion was the
central thread that ran through the lives of my
parents, as well as the lives of both paternal and
maternal grandparents. One of my earliest memories
is riding to and from church in a bumpy wagon with
my parents. The church was the central force in our
community. This force led me, at the age of twelve,
to seek an understanding of a God that I could not
see with my eyes, or touch with my hands. This
search for understanding has continued throughout my
life.
PageOneLit.com: Was reading a part of your life?
Mamie L. Smith: Yes, reading was a great part of my
life. It stemmed from the fact that my parents
wanted to give their children the best education
that they could. My father would say, “Turn off that
radio and get your lesson!” To him, getting my
lesson was seeking knowledge, and he knew the best
place to gain that knowledge, was by reading books.
So, I grew up studying and reading books. There are
many quiet places on a farm that one can nestle
into, and I found my way into many of them, and read
books.
PageOneLit.com: Who were your earliest influences,
and why?
Mamie L. Smith: The earliest
influence in my life was my Aunt Nettie. She was the
principal of the school that I attended. Aunt Nettie
was tall in stature, eloquent in speech, and exuded
courage, confidence and elegance. I wanted to be
just like her! At the age of five, my mother entered
me in speaking contests which gave me several
opportunities to polish my skills. By the age of
ten, I was a “carbon copy” of my Aunt Nettie.
PageOneLit.com: Why did you write “The Unfolding of
a Rose?”
Mamie L. Smith: Since becoming a Christian Scientist
over thirty-eight years ago, I have developed what I
refer to as “an inner ear.” I listen to my thoughts.
Part of that listening, is determining their
origin—whether they are good thoughts or bad
thoughts. Once I have determined their source, I
decide if I will follow them, or go in another
direction. After the death of my daughter, I was
suffering from deep-seated pain and grief. A
recurring thought was, “You must write down her
story!” I ignored it, because I knew that writing
down her story would entail reliving moments and
experiences that I was trying to forget. This was
also at a time when I felt that God had not “kept
His part of the bargain,” so I did not want to
listen to Him. As I continued to read and study the
Bible, and other Christian literature, my thought
became receptive to the idea that my daughter’s
story should be written down. This was later
confirmed when a respected customer stated
emphatically, that God had revealed to her that
Meta’s story needed to be told.
I believe that each person has a specific purpose in
living. That purpose is to give to the world
thoughts, words, and experiences that no other
person can give, but him or her. Every person’s
individuality is unique to himself, or herself.
These expressions of individuality, should not be a
hindrance to the world, but, should help make it a
better place to live—thoughts that establish hope,
faith, courage, strength, persistence, and a sense
of well being, no matter what the circumstances are.
These in turn, help everyone gain a higher sense of
what life is—the divine activity of thought. “The
Unfolding of a Rose” is my daughter’s and my gift to
the world.
PageOneLit.com: How does the title relate to the
subject matter of the story?
Mamie L. Smith: The title of the book, “The
Unfolding of a Rose,” is symbolic to the unfolding
of ideas in one’s thoughts. I believe that a
person’s life is like the petals of a rose—it
unfolds day by day, and blossoms into perfect
thoughts, words, and deeds. The ideas and concepts
that you place in front of your thought, determine
the words and actions that follow, and these words
and actions constitute one’s life. “The Unfolding of
a Rose” gives a day-to-day accounting of the
thoughts, words, and experiences that my daughter
and I embraced as she faced breast cancer. It was
and is, an ongoing process, built on years of study,
faith and revelation. As the laws of God were
adhered to, this enabled us to overcome challenges
that we could not have, under normal circumstances.
PageOneLit.com: Who or what is a Christian
Scientist?
Mamie L. Smith: There are numerous things that
define a person as a Christian Scientist. However,
simplistically, a Christian Scientist is one who
uses his understanding of God, to overcome any
difficulty or challenge in his human experience—be
it physical, mental, emotional, financial, or
otherwise. The word “Christian,” comes from the
word, “Christ,” which historically means “The
Anointed One.” In the New Testament, the anointed
one is referred to as “The Messiah” or the man
Jesus. I believe Jesus was the greatest example of
the demonstration of God’s laws, than anyone else
who has walked on the face of the earth. He embodied
the “Christ,” which I see as that divine connection
that comes from God, and enables one to destroy
anything that is not Godlike, in human thought. Once
destroyed in thought, the person is able to live in
harmony with God’s laws. “Science” means
demonstration of. Therefore, I conclude that
“Christian Science” is the demonstration of God’s
laws in human experiences, and a person who
demonstrates God’s laws, is a Christian Scientist.
PageOneLit.com: In the book “The Unfolding of a
Rose,” you discuss your mother’s (Mamie) battle with
breast cancer, and how she refused medical
treatment—explain.
Mamie L. Smith: In my book, “The Unfolding of a
Rose,” I discuss how my daughter Meta, accepted
surgery at the initial stages of her diagnosis of
breast cancer, but later, refused further treatment.
As a student of Christian Science, Meta spent three
years trying to decide if she wanted to rely totally
on Christian Science treatment, or accept the
traditional way of dealing with the disease. She
read often the statement in Science and Health with
Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, which says
“Christian Science is the most skilful surgeon, but
surgery is the branch in its healing which will be
last acknowledged” (p. 402). After much prayer, she
decided that she would allow medical doctors to
perform the surgery. When this proved disastrous,
she refused additional medical treatment. The choice
to rely totally on Christian Science, was not taken
lightly, and was gained through daily prayer, and
dedication to God.
PageOneLit.com: Explain “Each day we worked to see
Meta as a spiritual being, not a physical one.”
Mamie L. Smith: This statement relates to my
understanding of the true nature of man, and how
this understanding brings about healing. Man is a
generic term that is applied to all mankind, and has
nothing to do with gender. I believe that the first
chapter of Genesis defines the true nature of man.
It informs us that only God created everything that
was created, inclusive of man, and not only did He
create everything, everything He created is good. In
this context, “good” is synonymous with “godlike.”
Specifically, Moses says in Genesis that “God said,
Let us make man in our image, after our likeness”
(1:26). Standing in front of a mirror, I see a
reflection exactly like myself, and that reflection
is my image. It also contains all the physical
characteristics that make me who I am. Applying that
same logic to the man made in the “image and
likeness” of God, means that man reflecting God, has
all the characteristics of God, and expresses all
that God is. The Scriptures teach that God is
Spirit, not flesh, blood, and bones. So, man,
reflecting God, is spiritual—also not flesh, blood,
and bones. Through the study and practice of
Christian Science, I believe that the man God
created, is not human, but divine. Where then, does
this misconception of man come from?” Programming,
misunderstanding, and conditioning. From the time we
come into the world, we are taught that the human
body defines life, and that this perception of life,
is only cognized through the five physical senses.
Spiritual understanding gives an opposite view of
man. This man is only seen through the spiritual
senses. My book, “The Unfolding of a Rose,” explains
in detail, the difference between the man God
created, and the man born of flesh and blood. When
one holds in thought the true picture of man,
thought is changed, and healing takes place. This is
why each day, Meta and I prayed diligently to
replace the “breast cancer” image of her with the
spiritual image of her. We knew that once her
thought totally accepted this spiritual image, her
body would yield to what her thought expressed, and
the healing of cancer would be accomplished.
PageOneLit.com: Was “The Unfolding of a Rose” a
difficult book to write, or was it therapy?
Mamie L. Smith: “The Unfolding of a Rose” was a very
difficult book to write. No, it was not therapy.
Therapy is a branch of medicine in which one applies
human remedies to physical ills. Writing “The
Unfolding of a Rose” is an explication of
metaphysics—applying the divine laws of God to
erroneous thoughts.
PageOneLit.com: What do you hope to achieve by
writing “The Unfolding of a Rose?”
Mamie L. Smith: My deepest desire is that every
person who reads “The Unfolding of a Rose” comes
away with a greater sense of peace, love, and joy—to
know that the physical life of their loved one was
not in vain—no matter how long, short, or troubled
it may have been. There is no greater pain than the
death of a child, and because of the high death rate
of children due to accidents, crime and disease,
parents increasingly find themselves lost in a sea
of pain and suffering, as their children leave them
behind. Guilt, anger and depression, can be exposed,
dealt with, and destroyed. I am living proof of
this.
PageOneLit.com: What is next?
Mamie L. Smith: I have begun to write a second book,
which will deal with day-to-day human
experiences—how to identify them, and overcome them.
PageOneLit.com: What was the last book you read?
Mamie L. Smith: The last book I read was “The Last
Lecture” by Randy Pausch.
PageOneLit.com: What are your hobbies?
Mamie L. Smith: My hobbies are reading, playing the
piano, watching sports, and listening to a great
debate.
PageOneLit.com: How do they enhance your writing?
Mamie L. Smith: Reading gives increased knowledge,
insight, and understanding, which serve as the
foundation of a good writer. Playing the piano
instills restfulness of thought, thereby allowing
the creative and inspirational juices to flow.
Watching sports help me to understand that
intellectually, writing is a skill, but unless one
connects with something beyond human reasoning, the
results are unpredictable. Watching a good debate,
parallels examining several ways of expressing the
same idea—molding and chiseling my thoughts, and
allowing them to guide my actions.
