this is good

hey friends,

in the conversation this week i mention at the beginning that i would be shocked if i actually published the chat. well, now i’m shocked that any part of the following has found its way to your inbox.

shocked and proud. :)

thank you all for inspiring me to surprise myself.

-SN

the story

what do you think?

i keep changing

because: human

you know

you either

grow or die

but like…

why?

can’t there ever be

a version of me

who says to myself:

“this is good

i’m good

i’ll rest with this iteration

i’ll allow this particular arrangement of Me

be the one that carries me

through The Rest”?

i’m addicted to growth

and (un?)fortunately

most consider this particular addiction a “good” one

(so there’s no help for this one)

because: societal pressure

(to live a Best life)

but like…

(again)

why?

i mean to what end

are we changing

are we growing

are we addicting

ourselves to more

considering how

we all End?

yes

we’ve only got

this one shot

at

All Of This

but…

are we running

from

our-good-enough-selves

when we run

after

our-nonexistent-idealized-non-selves?

friends:

i keep changing

i presume for the better

but…

how do i know?

i’m a storytelling animal

because: human

so i’ll always find a narrative

to make me feel

better

about the perpetual upgrading

my OS seems to arbitrarily need

which makes me feel…

suspicious

of my own interpretation

of my so-called betterment

and…

why do i presume

i’m the ideal arbiter

to determine

my ideal Self?

hmm?

just some questions asked

at the beginning of a dusk

that has left me

feeling metamorphosed

from the person i was at the end of a dawn

i might be missing her

maybe she was better

in her chrysalis

but i have wings now

and that’s…

that’s better right?

what…

what do you think?

the conversation

the question

do you trust yourself to intervene with yourself should you realize that a passion has become an addiction, no matter how praised you may be for being in its grasp?

the curation

the things that have caught my attention have been a bit random this week, so the following three items may at first glance seem wholly unconnected. i will do my best to weave a thread—though tenuous—through them.

• first, this article’s headline—What good is great literature?—made me click. it questions the relevancy of the Nobel Prize in Literature as well as other esteemed accolades dealt out by self-appointed committees of self-ascribed mavens. (a break through the paywall)

• next, this article features an author who received so few accolades in her time that she was assigned one of the most feared terms in all creative circles: obscure. but now that we’ve exhausted the reboots and reworks of her contemporaries, including Austen and Dickens, we have “discovered” her stories and her impact on the pantheon of storytellers who have experienced greater postmortem popularity.

• last, this video made me happy—and hungry! reading great books, whether prized or forgotten, always make me happy and hungry. see what i did there? :) i hope the gorgeous filming and delicious recipes inspire you, now that baking season has finally arrived! i can’t wait to hear about your pumpkin-spice-scented culinary adventures. :)

the playlist

i started an autumn playlist, and i’ll add to it as songs pop into my head over the next several weeks. i’d love to hear what you think about the selection so far, and i’d really appreciate some song recommendations! what are you listening to on repeat these chilly, cozy days?

the books

i found this list of book recommendations “full of faerie scholars, magical government workers, and odd-ball couples” if that sounds like what you need right now. honestly, it sounds like what we all need all the time, but especially in the early weeks of fall. please let me know if you end up picking up a book from this list!

the good stuff

i’m just going to leave this segment of a dialogue between the article author and the physicist author right here:

i hope you read the entire article, and i hope you understand why i shared this in the good stuff.

the resonance

one of you sent me a message last week, and this week’s newsletter may not have come into existence, if it weren’t for your words. i’ll never tire of saying: thank you.

you all have no idea how much your feedback means to me. please keep the messages coming. :)

the affirmations

you are the drop

and

you are the ocean

short-ish and sweet-ish. :)

thank you, as always.

—Sarah Narei