Pieces of the Puzzle

While reading Libra, I've begun to wonder about the details of my life that would be scrutinized if I were suddenly in Oswald's place. A million pieces of my existence holding very little significance would suddenly be considered "pieces of the puzzle," and my quirks and mannerisms would be analyzed over and over in an attempt to create a coherent narrative of my life up until that specific event that brought me into the public's attention. But the reality is, we don't necessarily live our lives with a particular fate in mind, every movement taking us one step closer to our defining moment. 

Nicholas Branch's notes on me might hone in on a number of "abnormalities" in my life, aiming to sketch the bigger picture. I spent three years living in the Middle East after 9/11, which is somewhat similar to how Oswald defected to Russia during the Cold War. It would be easy to shape this into something that might have developed in me "anti-American" perspective, or a multitude of other conspiracies which I couldn't possibly imagine. But Branch was even going through Oswald's floor plans, home movies, dreams, and photos, to name a few. How easy it would be to selectively arrange a few dreams and quotes and photos to create a person with whatever slant you have in mind. Everything DeLillo has said so far seems legit enough, but I have to remind myself how complicated every person's life is and that it can't be simply shaped into a specific character. Win Everett knows this and Nicholas Branch knows this, and so it's DeLillo himself who seems to plant the idea in our heads, confusing us all the more with his conspiracy theories.