Fall begins. My kids are sick. But several years in, I may actually know how to handle it. We’ll see next week if I’m right.
Reading
Continuing with Grapes of Wrath, which I completely understand most people read in High School. I did not. And I do love it. It has some of the most keen and insightful reflections on the nature of people in the faith of unspeakable adversity.
And this you can know—fear the time when Manself will not suffer and die for a concept, for this one quality is the foundation of Manself, and this one quality is man, distinctive in the universe.
But at the center, it’s all heart. It’s just about a family trying to get along, alone, but together
They were afraid, now that the time had come—afraid in the same way Grampa was afraid. They saw the shed take shape against the light, and they saw the lanterns pale until they no longer cast their circles of yellow light. The stars went out, few by few, toward the west. And still the family stood about like dream walkers, their eyes focused panoramically, seeing no detail, but the whole dawn, the whole land, the whole texture of the country at once.
Watching
Finished the final season of Sex Education, which was a really well done show, but one that kind of falls short in its final season. For good reason, there is a lot of length given to the auxiliary characters, and they all shine (Eric especially, who finds his purpose in brightness), but Otis and Maeve fail to ever really connect with the heart of the show. Still, it was a good send off, and one that gave some time to properly explore its edges, where it was always most interesting anyway.
Listening well is a superpower. While listening to someone you love keep asking them “Is there more?” until there is no more.
