Harper Lee Was Great But It’s Her Friends Who Are Inspiring

Christmas Eve, 1956, a woman makes her way through the cold, wet New York City streets to the cheerful home of friends. In the seven years since she moved to the Big Apple, this is the first time she didn’t have to toil away on Christmas day working at a job, and she was happy to be spending the holiday with people she loved and who loved her. Her family was far off in Alabama and she missed the holiday cheer.

That woman was Nelle Harper Lee, soon to become the author of one of the great American novels, “To Kill a Mockingbird”. Much has been written about the famous author, but this story isn’t about her. It’s about her friends.

To have people who believe in us, heart and soul, no questions asked, is a rare and wondrous thing. People can love us and support us and cheer for us, but total belief in someone’s abilities is on another level, and the Browns were fully imbued with faith in Harper.

Michael and Joy Brown were not wealthy people in the winter of 1956, but they had done fairly well that year. Michael performed in cabaret shows and wrote music. He would go on to a long, successful career as a “composer, lyricist, writer, director, producer, and performer.” He wrote Broadway musicals and children’s books and, along with Joy, shared a love of books, art and music with Harper.

The Gift

As Christmas morning unfolded, the Browns’ two children gleefully dived into the presents, much to Lee’s delight, but she noticed that there didn’t seem to be any presents for her. That is until Joy told her that an envelope on the tree was hers. Lee couldn’t believe her eyes when she opened it to find a note:

“You have one year off from your job to write whatever you please. Merry Christmas.”

It was an unbelievable gift, and for a little while Harper was stunned into silence. She didn’t understand why her friends would do such a thing. In 1961, a year after “To Kill a Mockingbird” was published, she wrote a piece about the gift in McCall’s magazine.

“They assured me that it was not some sort of joke. They’d had a good year, they said. They’d saved some money and thought it was high time they did something about me.

“What do you mean, do something about me?”

To tell the truth – if I really wanted to know – they thought I had a great talent, and…

“What makes you think that?”

It was plain to anyone who knew me, they said, if anyone would stop to look. They wanted to show their faith in me the best way they knew how. Whether I ever sold a line was immaterial. They wanted to give me a full, fair chance to learn my craft, free from the harassments of a regular job. Would I accept their gift? There were no strings at all. Please accept, with their love.”

There followed a bit of genteel haggling, with the Browns insisting in every way they knew how that she deserved the gift. She accepted. She spent the next year writing the book, and then a few years editing and re-editing at the behest of her publishing company. The rest is now history, thanks to the enduring legacy of the Browns.

The most important thing that the Browns told Lee were seven plainspoken words:

“Just permit us to believe in you.”

They didn’t care if she was published. They didn’t care about her output or productivity. They only cared about her. They weren’t fabulously wealthy, and supporting their friend for a year was a financial gamble. They had a young family. Emergencies occur. Things happen. Writing and performing is a precarious occupation. None of that mattered.

Can you imagine? Would Harper Lee have become the same kind of author without the Browns? Belief is a powerful thing. Faith in the people we love can take them places they can’t imagine. Belief and faith are inspiring. The selfless and loving act of the Browns elevates them to the status of highly inspiring human beings.