July was a month of transition for me. Different from the previous seven months where I stayed low, slow and quiet, in July I felt the presence of extra coal in my supply of energy. I felt a little more pep in my step and noticed that my body was needing less sleep. What was I to do with my extra coal? Throw some on the fire and get to living, I guessed. But I did so cautiously.
I said to myself, "You don't want to throw yourself back into everything and end up where you were last year. Slow and steady." Taking this approach, I was still more productive and made some very happy memories last month. Here are a few:
I got a haircut. Why did I wait so long? Why are you waiting so long? Go get a haircut and enjoy the happiness boost! (But only if you want to. Don't let me boss you around. It's just that I feel lighter post-haircut and want that for everyone!)
I helped my son find and purchase his first car, accomplishing my goal of helping each of my children to purchase good cars, paid for with cash. I'm thrilled for him to enjoy the fruit of his hard work, as the girls have been. All three kids worked so hard to save the money to purchase their cars. It's something I never did at their age, and seeing them stay the course month by month was inspiring. Cars are expensive, y'all!
I pushed myself outside in the evenings and played corn hole with my husband, watering fruit trees between turns. I stood in my wild, unmanaged garden and thought, "This really isn't so bad to look at. And we're still getting a harvest, with much less work! Maybe I don't need to put as much energy into tidying the garden each year as I have been."
And last, I read great books that stirred up my soul. Would you like to know which books they were? Don't worry--I never gate-keep. Read on...
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Reading Riches: Everything I Read This Month
(To learn more about each book, click the cover image. You'll be taken to its Goodreads page, with a lengthy description and more reader reviews.)
Hannah Coulter, by Wendell Berry.
What a perfect summer read! Hannah Coulter is the story of an elderly woman recounting her life as a farmer's wife and mother. The story spans the decades from the 1920's to around the 1990's. As she details the events of her life, Hannah also reflects on the changes to the Kentucky landscape and American culture. It's a heartfelt story about a way of life that once thrived, but is now fading into obscurity. It's a mother resigned to the chances she was given, sharing her heart. I loved this book and enjoyed our book club discussion about it. I also enjoyed doing a deep-dive on Wendell Berry's life, writing, and activism. I enjoyed the sampling of his poetry that I read and will be looking to read more in the future.
My rating: 5/5
Beyond Mere Motherhood, by Cindy Rollins.
I already said a lot about this book on my TBR: July post since I was two-thirds of the way through when I wrote it. Couldn't resist. ;)
Beyond Mere Motherhood is a thought-project encouraging readers to consider what life could look like after raising their children. Each chapter has one area of focus, exploring different avenues to develop and educate oneself, to experience more of the joys of living with that virtue in mind. Topics include "The Thinking Mother", "The Reading Mother", "The Active Mother", "The Studious Mother", and "The Creative Mother," among others. The author, Cindy Rollins, also weaves in her own experience with each as she goes. She seems like a kind, honest, and down-to-earth woman who I would very much like to know.
There is also a reading and resource list at the end of each chapter, making it easy to springboard off of this book and into many others that you might find intriguing.
I loved this book and intend to use it as a resource regularly as I'm navigating my own midlife, exploring life beyond motherhood. Thank you, Kristin, for putting it into my hands. I'm so grateful for your thoughtful friendship.
My rating: 5/5
After Annie, by Anna Quindlen.
A husband and his four young children experience a sudden tragedy when wife and mom Annie dies of a brain aneurism while making dinner one night. That's the premise for After Annie, a beautifully written and thought out story of loss, grief, and family.
Ugh. If this book didn't remind me so much of one of the hardest seasons of my own life, I think I could have enjoyed it more. But this book wrecked me, guys. It's really good and I do recommend it, but just know that it's hard to sit inside this story at times. I think Anna Quindlen did a fantastic job, portraying the messy, uncomfortable, upsetting reality that can unfold after a tragic event rocks and fractures a family. Go ahead and read this book, but keep your tissues nearby.
My rating: 4/5
The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho.
Recommended many times over, I have had this book on my radar for years. I didn't realize until listening to the foreword, however, that it's a modern classic originally published in Spanish in 1988.
This short fable is about a boy named Santiago, a priest-in-training turned shepherd, who goes in search of his "personal legend" in Egypt after having a dream instructing him to do so. He meets many people along the way including a fortune teller, a shopkeeper, a tribe of desert-dwellers, and finally, The Alchemist.
I have been wanting to read more books in translation and love reading fables, so this was a good fit for me. I especially loved the gentle and quiet tone of this story, and the romantic language of the writing, which I guess is more common in Latin literature.
This felt like a bedtime story in the best way.
My rating: 4/5
DNF Files: Books I Started and Did Not Finish
Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir.
What's it about?
This is a sci-fi book about a teacher who wakes up to find himself in space after learning that the earth is facing extinction.
Why did I start this book?
Jeff read and enjoyed Weir's other sci-fi space novel and its companion movie, The Martian. We chose this audiobook to listen to during our creative work time.
Why did I DNF this book?
I think it can be summed up in three points: 1.) Unlikeable protagonist. 2.) Very little action, only stream-of-consciousness thought for many chapters. 3.) So much science jargon.
For me to enjoy a strictly sci-fi novel, I need for there to be at least a small human element that rings true. This wasn't a good fit for me. Jeff said that The Martian was the same way from start to finish, and that he enjoys that format. A great fit for him.
Blue Sisters, by Coco Mellors.
What's it about?
Three adult sisters finding their footing a year after a fourth sister dies unexpectedly.
Why did I start this book?
This book is well-reviewed and on a lot of must-read lists from last year. I also love books from multiple perspectives.
Why did I DNF this book?
I was hoping this would be a story in the same vein of Ann Napolitano's Hello, Beautiful, which is the story of four sisters growing up in New York. However, I couldn't get into this story and felt that, while the writing was good, the characters grated on me. I think I was hoping for something more wholesome or hopeful. This book made me sad and I guess I wasn't in the mood for that.
Marked Passages: Thoughts That Made Me Feel, Think, or See Things Differently
"Write this on my tombstone: 'She tried hard, but people still got hurt.'"
- Beyond Mere Motherhood, quoting the British television show Madam Secretary.
If you want all or nothing, you get nothing.
-Edith Schaeffer
All the general things people said, about how the person was a good friend and a good wife and a good mother, were useless. Almost insulting in their lack of specificity. But all the specific things he could say about Annie, the girl he’d picked up at the party—picked up and knocked up; married, made a life with—were too intimate. It wasn’t just that Bill was uncomfortable standing up and speaking in front of a lot of people. It was that what he had, he didn’t want to share. He needed to hold it all now, like a life preserver.
-After Annie
"The only things that concerned the sheep were food and water. They were content with just food and water, and, in exchange, they generously gave of their wool, their company, and—once in a while—their meat. If I became a monster today, and decided to kill them, one by one, they would become aware only after most of the flock had been slaughtered," thought the boy. “They trust me, and they’ve forgotten how to rely on their own instincts, because I lead them to nourishment.”
-The Alchemist
You don’t know your principles until they become inconvenient to you.
-Blue Sisters
Okay, that’s it from me for now! Until next time,
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