How an ugly mummy, tattoos, my friend's 11 year old daughter and Brad Pitt helped me finish my first novel.

I can't remember when or how my fascination grew with this 5300 year old mummy, but his mystery has changed a major trajectory of my life.  All of the possibilities that existed in the unknown about Ötzi captured my attention especially when murder was involved.

My friend told me her 11 year old daughter was crazy about Ötzi. A fourth grader tried to learn everything she could about what seemed on surface to be a distorted, ugly corpse.

When I started this project in 2015, only academic and National Geographic articles were produced. Now pages of search results exist dedicated to studying him, debating his demise, copying his tools. The man's story was begging to be heard once again.

So much is known about his last two meals, his clothes, his medicinal remedies, but only speculation surrounds who he really was and what brought him to that mountain.  To date 62 tattoos have been counted on his body, so I google Ötzi's tattoos and found Brad Pitt. Apparently he has the famous outline of Ötzi's mummy inked on his forearm together with a quote by Nietzche regarding the absurdity of life juxtaposed to "Invictus" a poem by Henley. The absurdity of life quote finishes with a loathing of human fraility. Invictus, however, speaks of courage in the face of darkness and the unconquerable spirit of humanity. My story aligns with the later as I do fully believe in the indomitable power of the human spirit.

In Ötzi I found diversity and unity. The timeless hope that we would have what it takes to face whatever lies ahead. Life doesn't promise the perfect Hollywood ending, but we can count on the unchangeable nature of change. We may get knocked down or set back, but through courage we find the way to stand. Once we do stand, no one will knock us down in the same way again. This timeless character embodies our need to feel connected. In Ötzi we find that common ground wondering if all this really matters. Whether a child or a celebrity, we ponder possibilities and begin to wonder.

Here's a link to a youtube video about Ötzi's tattoos