At times we meet people whose stories are incredibly worth telling, but their stories are largely left untold. Other times, we find ourselves enthralled by stories of little consequence told with such fervor that we cannot help but listen. It’s a gift when you meet someone who has both high quality stories and high quality storytelling. When you meet someone whose stories are a reward in and of themselves it gratifies the heart, mind and spirit.
Lester Murray is one such storyteller when speaking of true tales from his life. Now, Murray is a novelist as well.
If you meet Murray or if you’re fortunate enough to cross paths with him, he could easily regale you of one of hundreds if not thousands of captivating stories from his life, some stories hilarious – like when he talks about his time doing missions or as a leader on church trips – other stories heartrending like when he talks about his time living in an orphanage where he almost died due to negligence.
Even the story leading up to Murray being inspired to write is inspiring.
“It was like something was talking to me from the inside saying, ‘write this book’”, said Murray, emphasizing his last three words by tapping assertively on the table in the newspaper office with each syllable as he described his inspiration for his young adult novel.
Murray was baffled and started asking himself, “Well, what am I supposed to write?”
Until he had a revelation that birthed the book. “All of a sudden, when I was at the computer, it was like I was seeing the whole thing going on,” said Murray. “I was like an invisible entity that no one could touch or see or feel or experience the presence of, but I was watching this whole thing come out of nowhere.”
Thirteen days later, Murray had the rough draft of his first novel, “Mystery Boy,” completed. Murray joked that his English wasn’t the best in that draft. “Because I had not been teaching English for 17 years,” he said with a smile. Murray was a career teacher before moving to Salem, and middle school students in the Salem area school districts may know him as their storytelling substitute teacher, Mr. Murray. Some Dent-Phelps R-III students may already be familiar with some of the earlier chapters of “Mystery Boy.” The book is geared toward middle schoolers.
After putting the book through rigorous corrections, “Mystery Boy” was ready for the publisher.
Murray described the premise of “Mystery Boy.” A young boy around middle school age is found in the middle of nowhere; the boy is unable to talk and has no knowledge of the world. According to Murray, this boy has an uncanny ability to inspire those around him.
“He is both loveable and extremely dangerous, if he needs to be,” states the book description listed with the book on the iuniverse website. “He is courageous but emotional, strong but weak. He is likeable – just like most children in this world. He is a young fellow, always moving forward, but he is as vulnerable as a newborn puppy or kitten. He’s just a kid, but a kid almost every kid in the world could either aspire to, or wish he was your best friend.”
Murray’s decades as a teacher lend him a wealth of experience with middle schoolers and kids of all ages.
If you were Murray’s student, he might tell you tales of his travels around the country and the world. “I’ve been to 10 different countries and all 50 states,” said Murray. Murray speaks fluent Spanish.
“This is the 20th year of my retirement,” said Murray. He has spent much of the time in the two decades since he retired going on mission trips and even fostering some kids for a while.
“It was two years ago,” said Murray of when he got a call from the Department of Family Services asking him to take care of some kids. They asked Murray if he knew the four siblings in question.
“I said ‘yeah, I know them’ because I would take them to church from right down the street or I would meet them at the church,” said Murray. “I had to take the kids. I couldn’t let them be spread out everywhere. I had a blast with them for nine months. I thoroughly enjoyed being with them.”
Murray moved to Salem three and a half years ago to be closer to his daughter and son-in-law.
“I love being with the kids, and they work real hard for me, almost always they work hard for me,” said Murray. And that’s because he rewards them with a story when they behave and get their work done. Murray said that he’s taught just about every grade there is, but his soft spot is for sixth and seventh graders, the age group that is the target audience of his novel.
“I love being there with the kids and apparently they love me coming, and it just makes me feel real good,” said Murray.
Murray turned 75 in October. Murray reflected on his own unfortunate situation as a child, which is part of what led him to become an educator, to be a positive force in the lives of kids. His father left when he was young, leaving his mother and grandmother to take care of him and his brother. When his grandmother passed away when he was two and a half, his mother was unable to care for he and his brother, and they were placed in an orphanage where they spent two years.
“Those two years we were in the orphanage were gigantically traumatic,” said Murray. He recalled a memory from near the end of his stay at the orphanage. “Orphanage officials took my brother and me up these winding stairs in their orphanage, they opened the door and there were all these kids who were super sick, and they shoved us in and closed the door,” he said. “My brother and I, we couldn’t get out. Don’t put us in there with those sick kids. Don’t put us in there, we’re not sick. But they put us in there with those children who were sick, and by that night because we were around those sick kids, we were sick as could be. I had scarlet fever. I was sick for a month.”
Murray said that he has always wondered why they would put all these kids into tight quarters.
Life didn’t get much better for Murray when he got home. His mother remarried and his step-father would beat him and his brother.
“I mean at the age of five, he beat me seriously with a belt and I don’t mean five or 10 swats. I mean he beat me,” said Murray. And that would be at least an annual occurrence for the rest of Murray’s childhood.
“As I got older, I thought to myself, I don’t want any other kid to have to go through any of this. I’ll grow up to be a teacher, and I’ll be as kind to the kids as I can,” said Murray. “I wasn’t a very good example to start with, but it didn’t take long for me to realize that these kids really need someone. I’d say within a year or two, that was it. Help the kids, help the kids, help the kids. That’s what I did.”
Murray continues to substitute teach in the Salem area and says he already has a sequel written, and depending on the reception of the first book, it may come in the near future as well. He already has plans for a third book.
