Three historical short stories by Alison Morton, Anna Belfrage, and Carolyn Hughes remind us that even when we stand alone, resilience, endurance, and hope can carry us through—just as Tom Waits sings in Hold On.
Sometimes courage isn’t glorious. Sometimes it is simply surviving another day. These stories celebrate endurance rather than victory, reminding us that history belonged just as much to those who endured as those who conquered.
I love Tom Waits’ music!
Featured stories that reminded me of Hold On by Tom Waits
The Sentry by Alison Morton
Roman province of Noricum, AD 395 – When danger strikes and you are on your own with
only fear as a companion.
“I can’t do this. I really can’t. I shivered and pulled my cloak tighter. Where was the relief force? Would my comrade die? I peered into the eastern sky. Please, Aurora, goddess of the dawn, come soon.”
Stepping Between by Anna Belfrage
Ludlow Castle, England, 1308 – When all you can do is to endure
“There were days when Adam believed that maybe Father would change. Days when Father laughed and teased, when he invested hours in teaching Adam to handle sword and lance, bow and axe. Those were the good days, days in which Father beamed at him, telling all the other guards of the Ludlow garrison that one day his son, his Adam, would be a formidable man-at arms, perhaps even a knight.”
Confronting Plague – Carolyn Hughes
England, 1361 – When courage must survive in the face of history’s cruellest plague.
“In June 1361, plague returned to England. Mariota, who survived what we now call The Black Death of 1349-50, must summon her courage to face the horror of what she knows very likely lies ahead. Young Betha, who wasn’t born eleven years ago, but now witnesses the terror first hand, must find unfamiliar, untested, courage, believing it her duty to support
her family.”
Discover such stories, exploring deep regret, lost love, and the crushing pain of memory matching the mood of Hold On by Tom Waits – and more – in Courage: Tales of History, Mystery and Hope:
Thanks for sharing, Patricia. I have this book on my wish list somewhere!
Thank you, Laura 🙂 I’m slowly making my way through it, pairing the stories with music.
Tom Waits was one of my favorite musicians during university. I thought his enduring music resonates with these stories.