Al Stumph

Wheels of My Life Al Stumph

One cold and snowy December evening in 2018, author Al Stumph made a list of cars and trucks he has owned. He later made another list of cars his Dad had owned and he had driven. The total, after combining both lists, exceeded 50. Then he remembered the motorcycles. The cars, motorcycles and trucks described herein were all real. However, Stumph writes, "it's possible my feelings about specific vehicles have amplified the significance of their positive and negative contributions to my life. The stories included here are based on facts as I recall them but searching for and recovering memories is always a creative process. That's one reason we humans often develop myths to explain phenomenon we observe. Lest the reader be confused, this account is closer to creative non-fiction than memoir." The poet and essayist Audre Lorde (1934-1992) coined the term "biomythography" to describe how and what she had written in her book Zami: A New Spelling Of My Name. Biomythography combines history, biography, and myth-making. It is in that spirit, Stumph concludes, "that I have constructed Wheels of My Life."