The pretty much incredible Becky Hartzog used this Mother Teresa adaptation of Kent Keith’s “The Paradoxical Commandment” as the benediction for Wake Forest’s graduation yesterday…While I had heard it before, I don’t think I could ever hear it often enough.

“People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered.  Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.  Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies.   Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you.  Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight.  Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous.  Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten.  Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough.  Give your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God.  It was never between you and them anyway.”

Well, time for a book review post!  As I gathered together the books I’ve read since last time, I realized that 4 out of 5 of the books I just finished reading provide some form of satire or societal critique.  So, it’s been an entertaining reading season, and probably explains why my cynicism has increased just slightly   I think I’m going to try out the quote-style book review once again, because there are some truly fabulous quotes that just need to be repeated.  Annnnnd…begin.

1. Love in a Dead Language – Lee Siegel. 

This book is…difficult to explain.  It’s kind of like 3 or 4 books in one.  It’s a fictional story (even though the author inserts himself as an active, albeit it minor, character) of a professor who falls in love with one of his students, and is murdered.  In honor of his lover, he has been translating the text of the Kama Sutra, and providing commentary.  After he dies, the completion of the translation and the other matters of the academic estate are left to one of his doctoral candidates, who then annotates the professor’s translation/commentary.  Sooo yeah.  There’s a lot of playing with language, which is awesome, and in some places it’s just ridiculous; definitely a funny & entertaining read, even if occasionally confusing.
“We were, nevertheless, not so happy that she had convinced Isaac that being a poet was a good career choice.  In Vatsyayana’s time the profession promised fame, fortune, the love of women, and the respect of men, not to mention a higher birth in the next life.  But no longer; we live, as everyone has surely noticed, in tawdry times in a banal world.”

2. Catcher in the Rye – J.D. Salinger.  Ah, Holden Caufield.  I guess I heard a lot of hype about this book, because I wasn’t completely bowled over or anything by it.  I guess at the time it was written it was most likely a truly transformative writing style – very innovative.  And it is incredibly stream-of-consciousness, and Holden is an engaging character, whether or not you like him (which I found him pretty sympathetic).  Good read.

“You could tell he wasn’t tired at all, though.  He was pretty oild up, for one thing. ‘I think that one of these days,’ he said, ‘you’re going to have to find out where you want to go.  And then you’ve got to start going there.  But immediately.  You [Holden] can’t afford to lose a minute.  Not you.’  I nodded, because he was looking right at me and all, but I wasn’t too sure what he was talking about.  I was pretty sure I knew, but I wasn’t too positive at the time.  I was too damn tired.”

3. The Mermaid Chair – Sue Monk Kidd

So.  This book is the only one that wasn’t somewhat satirical.  It was also probably the one I enjoyed the least out of this batch. I like Sue Monk Kidd – I *loved* The Secret Life of Bees.  But I don’t know, I just found this one kind of meh.  Predictable; not in terms of plot (which is pretty interesting) but just in terms of message I guess.  And delivery/voice.  Same old thing.  True, it’s an interesting premise – a woman falling in love with a monk, plus the additional mystery of what’s going on with her mother and how her father died – but it really just kind of fell flat for me.  It was also a little too romance-novel-esq…mushy.  But there were still some enjoyable parts, and the ending was a little surprising in some ways.  An easy read to pick up and put down from time to time, I think (what my former yoga instructor called “a good bedside book”).

“After I’d learned how my father had died, there was a lifting away of sorrow.  I can’t explain that, except to say there’s release in knowing the truth no matter how anguishing it is.  You come finally to the irreducible thing, and there’s nothing left to do but pick it up and hold it.  Then, at least, you can enter the severe mercy of acceptance.”

4.  Mumbo Jumbo – Ishmael Reed.  I enjoyed this book quite a bit; it really pushed me to think and examine it in a literary way (as had Love in a Dead Language).  Reed’s composition of the novel was stimulating and drew from a number of different means of presentation.  The novel presents the “Jes Grew” movement in the 1920s and the ensuing conspiracy by the “Wallflower Order” to depose it.  Essentially it looks at the way Western Civilization seeks to control its members of society and, specifically, the relations between blacks & whites throughout history.  Highly satirical and definitely requires that you pay close attention to what you’re reading.“What it boils down to, LaBas, is intent.  If your heart’s there, man, that’s 1/2 the thing about The Work.  Even the European Occultists say that.  Doing The Work is not like taking inventory,  Improvise some.  Open up, PaPa.  Stretch on out with It.”

5. Nightlight: A Parody – The Harvard Lampoon.  I absolutely LOVED this book.  Like more than words can say.  As most of you know, I’m a bit ambivalent when it comes to the Twilight saga…this book picks up on all of those aspects which caused me to take issue with the books.  And it’s just so dead-on and hilarious.  Please go read it.  I can’t say it enough.  Also, you’re going to have multiple quotes on this one cause it cracks me up…It’s enjoyable whether or not you’ve read the Twilight books, or seen the movie, but it’s even more amazing if you have read the books…

“Why did I have to beware?  Was Edwart going to hurt me?  What hadn’t he hurt me yet?  Was I not worth the trouble of hurting?  No.  I was being insecure.  I was worth a lot of hurting, elaborately planned to take place in an old ballerina room with easily shattered mirrors to complete the gloriously gory spectacle.  If Edwart didn’t think I was worth that, I’m sure some other vampire would.”

“‘So is it awkward if I ask what our status is?’ I asked quickly.  Not that I cared either way.  I just wanted to know, you know?  ‘Not at all.  We’re a couple now.’  Hmm. I wondered how I’d express that on Facebook.  I’d have to change it from what it was before: ‘It’s complicated with a vampire.’  But then I realized that worked pretty well with the new scenario.”

Anyway, that’s what I’ve been reading for the past monthish.  Onto new books…happy reading all!

Well, I fully intended to update about the first week of my New Year, etc, but unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you feel about reading my meanderings) I’m a little too tired.  Also, I read this passage in The Catcher in the Rye and felt like posting it somewhere.  So, it’s a quote post!

“…In a way, it was sort of depressing, too, because you kept wondering what the hell would happen to all of them [the girls].  When they got out of school and college, I mean.  You figured most of them would probably marry dopey guys.  Guys that always talk about how many miles they get to a gallon in their goddam cars.  Guys that get sore and childish as hell if you beat them at golf, or even just some stupid game like ping-pong.  Guys that are very mean.  Guys that never read books.  Guys that are very boring – But I have to be careful about that.  I mean about calling certain guys bores.  I don’t understand boring guys.  I really don’t.  When I was at Elkton Hills, I roomed for about two months with this boy, Harris Macklin.  He was very intelligent and all, but he was one of the biggest bores I ever met…But he could do one thing.  The sonuvabitch could whistle better than anybody I ever heard…Naturally, I never told him I thought he was a terrific whistler.  I mean you don’t just go up to somebody and say, ‘You’re a terrific whistler.’  But I roomed with him for about two whole months, even though he bored me till I was half crazy, just because he was such a terrific whistler, the best I ever heard.  So I don’t know about bores.  Maybe you shouldn’t feel too sorry if you see some swell girl getting married to them.  They don’t hurt anybody, most of them, and maybe they’re secretly all terrific whistlers or something.  Who the hell knows?  Not me.” – J.D. Salinger

Also, this: “Goddamn money.  It always ends up making you blue as hell.”

This made my day so much better, so of course I had to share.  Very, very wise stuff.

“I feel lost, weary, lonely, overwhelmed, and have taken so many wrong turns. You know the plans You have for me. Order my steps! I feel stuck in life between the questions ‘why?’ and ‘when?’ Before I give up and shut down with an ‘I don’t care anymore’ attitude, please meet me right now where my needs are.

Reveal to me Your blessed assurance in a way that I could not doubt Your presence and provision in my life. Change my heart, thoughts, and words. If there are no doors of escape from my circumstances, teach me to endure with courage, faith, a plan of action, and a sound mind. Restore my hope and joy with your direction and protection.

Lord You have my full attention. I listen only to You. I surrender my whole heart and life to You with confidence that You are able to make all things work together for my good. I turn my attention away from the enemy of discouragement and turn my face to You, my Redeemer, for strength and provision.

Lord, thank You for loving me just as I am. Thank You for never giving up on me even though I sometimes feel full of shame, anger, and fear. Thank You for your mercy, grace, and forgiveness. Breathe on me today with a fresh breeze of love, peace, and comfort. Restore me in the broken places. I’m tired and I rest in Your promise that Your eye is on the sparrow, and Your eye is on me.

I am taking deep breaths, exhaling the stress and trusting Your word. I am feeling stronger now and give You thanks in advance for my unusual blessings and breakthrough. I will stop counting my bruises and start counting my blessings. I realize now it’s time to take better care of myself.

Thank You Lord for the remembrance of Your wounds and Your resurrection power. This inspires me to rise and roll away the stone of my cave of depression and isolation. I am alive. I am still here. This is a day I have never seen before. I will rejoice and be glad in it. I rise today in Your love knowing that my pain can change. And so it is!

In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

-Jewel Diamond Taylor

A book & music review post (or even 2) to come soon

“…Not to mention that I have finally arrived at that age where a woman starts to question whether the wisest way to get over the loss of one beautiful brown-eyed young man is indeed to promptly invite another one into her bed.  This is why I have been alone for many months now.  This is why, in fact, I have decided to spend this entire year in celibacy. …I walk up the stairs to my fourth-floor apartment, all alone.  I let myself into my tiny little studio, all alone.  I shut the door behind me.  Another solitary bedtime in Rome.  Another long night’s sleep ahead of me, with nobody and nothing in my bed except a pile of Italian phrasebooks and dictionaries.  I am alone, I am all alone, I am completely alone.  Grasping this reality, I let go of my bag, drop to my knees and press my forehead against the floor.  There, I offer up to the universe a fervent prayer of thanks.  First in English.  Then in Italian.  And then – just to get the point across – in Sanskirt.” – Elizabeth Gilbert, eat pray love.

Yes, but…she got to be in Rome…