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August 13-14, 2007
Santa Cruz, California
Received by FAB
I am here, William Shakespeare.
The legend about my drinking, and then sleeping beneath a tree,
has no truth to it whatsoever.
When I was 16, I acted as a tutor or schoolmaster to younger children.
I was still emotionally raw from the death of my sister the year
before, so it provided relief.
Some have felt that I was referred to in the will of Alexander Hoghton
as "William Shakeshafte," but it is not true. There is
no connection whatsoever to me in the will.
As a teenager, I had no religious convictions at all, for Catholicism
or the Church of England. Even at that young age, I was preoccupied
with other matters. I referred in yesterday's channeling to the
fact that the mystery plays affected me deeply as a child. But it
didn't take root.
The location of my tutoring was in Beauchamps Court, which was 12
miles from Stratford, under the patronage of Sir Fulke Greville,
who was related to my mother's side of the family. It was arranged
through my mother, who let him know that I was available.
Some have felt that the handwriting annotating the Hall's Chronicles
is my own, but it is not.
I received my training and first experiences as an actor at Rufford
Hall, in the acting company of Sir Thomas Hesketh.
I returned to Stratford when I was 18, that is, in 1582. My father
and I then discussed my future. It was agreed that I would become
a law clerk. My employer would be Henry Rogers, the town clerk of
Stratford. It was from this experience that I acquired knowledge
of legal terms, which I used in abundance in my plays.
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