It’s a holiday in the US today that both (informally) signals the beginning of summer and (more importantly) gives us time to remember those who’ve lost their lives fighting on behalf of our country. Graham and I will be spending today in – he’s got some work to do, and I’ve got a short story to write (which will be out tomorrow).
But, for those celebrating more formally, or for anyone enjoying this day, I wish you a good one, and time to reflect and remember.
I’m working on it! Or, I’m trying to. And it’ll be up on either Monday or Tuesday of next week.
I’m writing this on Thursday, May 26th. It’s cloudy outside, and a little breezy, and I’m watching cardinals chase each other around in the birch tree by my back window. Sometimes, it strikes me how this planet just keeps turning. It has to. There is no other choice. It turns, and we keep going.
I’d planned for my story to be finished and posted by the end of this week, but honestly, I’m just having trouble writing much of anything at this moment. Nothing feels right. My words sound hollow and empty. My heart hurts for a tragedy that both is and isn’t mine, and I’m angry and frustrated that my country has to mourn losses like this over and over. I’m not trying to get political, and I’m not trying to claim grief that doesn’t belong to me, and I’m certainly not trying to dump my feelings in anyone else’s lap. We were never meant to carry the burdens of the whole world.
Anyway, I can’t seem to write anything else right now, so I wrote this. I’ll be back next week, with a (hopefully) good story, and some happier thoughts. Until then, if you feel this way, too, wherever you are, know that you’re not alone. We carry the burdens of our world whether we’re meant to or not, but at least we can carry them together.
How many ways
can you say
“My heart breaks”
before you
run out
(of days
of time
of lives)
of words?
That’s what it was this weekend. Even for the most playful and spirited of puppies.
(This is Honey, and she belongs to our friend.)
Not to whine, but it was way, way too much for me, and though we had fun – an art show, some live music, and time spent with friends and pups – I was exhausted, dried out, sweaty, and a little grumpy by Sunday evening. I am just not a hot weather person, y’all. And I hope (perhaps a fool’s hope) that the brief heatwave we had on Saturday and Sunday is not a sign of things to come for this summer. But I have a hunch it’s going to be exactly what we’re in for.
So, in the spirit of my last few posts, here’s a question: What are your favorite ways to stay cool and beat the heat? Because I’m certainly not very good at it, and I need all the help I can get.
I know this is the second question I’ve posted this week, but it’s one I’ve been pondering lately.
Graham and I live in a tiny village. But that village is part of a county split between a busy, suburban east and a quiet, rural west. And that county is part of a state full of large metropolitan areas and even larger swaths of coastline, mountains, and small country towns.
By way of example, this is Virginia:
This is also Virginia:
And so is this:
In our village, we stay involved in civic and volunteer organizations, we support the businesses and the small school operating here, and we try to help our neighbors when they need it. We feel safe, and very happy. And in the next town over, we’ve got a whole second community – we play trivia every Thursday, we’re regulars at several businesses, and it’s pretty rare to walk down the sidewalk on any given day and not see someone we know. We feel connected here – to the people around us, to our local government, to the history that we’re becoming part of – and when we think about what community means to us, that’s it: connection.
Or perhaps it’s something a little deeper than that.
It’s feeling rooted, I think.
And I never thought I’d feel that way after I left my childhood home in southwest Virginia. I think many people worry about that, too, and I feel really lucky that I’ve found this place.
So, that’s community for me, then: people, place, connection, and roots. But I know that my world isn’t the world, and there are all kinds of ways to be part of a community.
Now, backing up.
I’ve been pondering all this of lately because I’ve been kicking around a new project idea, something that would explore where I came from, through the lens of where I am now, and with the wisdom and knowledge that I’ve gained as I’ve grown up (and continue to grow up…it’s a process, y’all). I’m not sure if I’m ready to write it at all, but I know that in order to write it well, I need more perspectives than just mine. I need to understand what people think of when they think of community. In order to really tell the story that I want to tell in a way that resonates, I think I need to know more about the people who will read it, where they come from and how they feel about community, and what their experiences have been in whatever places they’ve chosen to call home.
And so I put it to you, my wonderful readers, from so many different places, and with so many different passions and ideas:
What does community mean to you?
One of my goals for 2022 is to read a fiction and nonfiction book every week. So, two books a week, essentially, trying to branch out into new topics and push myself to read new things. I’m a little ahead of the game right now at 56 books read. (Not a contest, but yay! That’s three more than I was able to read during all of last year.) But as you can imagine, I’m always on the lookout for my next read.
So tell me, what are you reading? What have you read lately? What should I read next? And if you’re looking for recommendations, too, feel free to leave me a comment! I’ve read lots of good stuff this year. 😊
I want to be
wild –
to roar at the sky
and sing with the wind,
to bloom alongside the flowers
and reach like the trees.
I want to be
free –
to think in cycles
and centuries,
and dance with the darkest memories,
and shine like the brightest stars.
I want to
see –
to feel it all,
hold it all,
to cradle it
here in the palm of my hand,
and know that I know
so little,
and everything.
Rain, rain, rain
through April to May –
could it be you’re here to stay?
It certainly feels that way.
************
Yes, friends, it’s yet another rainy day, and it’s set to be a rainy weekend. I like rainy weather – it’s good for book-reading and tea-sipping and nap-taking. But…it would be nice to see some blue skies for more than a few hours at a time between rain clouds. I shouldn’t complain, though. Everything is so lusciously, livingly green.
If the weather keeps this up, it’s going to be a very vibrant summer.
For the last two years at around this time, a family of foxes has taken up residence under our barn. I’ve written about them before – a few times, in fact.
Mama and babies, and we’ve had the privilege of watching the kits grow and play. And y’all, they grow up so fast!
We’ve not seen them this year, though we do regularly catch glimpses of an adult fox hunting in our back field, and over the weekend, Graham saw her poking around near our barn. So maybe they’re just moving in a little late.
We shall see! And in the meantime, I’m glad we have cute pictures and sweet memories.
Is there any happier creature in the world than a cat in his favorite sunny spot?
I really don’t think there is, y’all. And yes, this is an older picture, if you feel like you’ve seen it before. He is so very comfy and asleep right now that I just couldn’t bother him with the camera. But trust me, he looks almost exactly the same, just absolutely at peace, dozing in the sunshine.
At any rate, after several days of cool temperatures, clouds, and rain showers, the sun is out and shining today. It’s a nice change for all of us, but I think Gatsby’s enjoying it the most.
I hope it’s a sign of good things to come this week!
A Virginia Writer's Diary 