absolutely beautiful quiet book about a dad and his daughter who live in the woods as runaways until an event causes them to have to reconsider everything. really, really beautiful story about friendship, family, sacrifice.
Unlike anything I’ve read. Hard to even put into words what this book is about, it’s about so many different things. If you like unusual books that mix origin of words with science and a fast paced mystery, you will enjoy this insane story. I loved it.
And here we are. It’s August. I re-start work, the kids will go back to school, eighth and twelfth grades. We have a lot going on this month. And I am feeling centered and grounded and I feel open to possibility. Let’s see how things unfold.
This months intention is: Big Joys: Time to get organized again, transitions are coming. twelfth and eight grades. These are big big milestones. Hug your kids. Get organized, plan, prepare and do what you need to do. Write down all your dreams. Make plans.
My goal for August is to love and support my people. To do what they need as much and as often as I can. I want to stay open and spacious and positive.
Here are some goals for August:
continue to draw, sketch, paint or do some artistic endeavor as often as I can
try to eat fresh food
do most of of HCOTF
support N with his trip and then with transitioning to school
support D with essays + driving and transitioning to school
Journal daily
Read a lot
Support J with his surgery and appointments and this potentially new path forward
continue medication
Continue documenting the joy
Love my people
Scrap and OLW
Go outdoors, sit outside, be in the sunshine
dive deeper into ease, release, equanimity, space, possibility and see what you might want to do for each. ( still haven’t done this but maybe I should give up?)
remember that it’s all bonus
take it slow and one day at a time at work and be patient with yourself. Listen. Don’t jump in.
be in the present moment, don’t count down the days
help D figure out his plans
Help K if she needs it
This is my list for now.
August, here we go. Let’s do this. Let it be full of joy.
And here we are, we made it to the end of July. With that, comes the end of the break I’ve been taking from work for the last three months. I am so grateful for this time I’ve had and also grateful for how I spent it.
This months intention was to Invite Joy: Create some adventure. Go places. Do things. Hug your people. Take chances.
I didn’t actually go anywhere or do much. I did hug my people. I read a lot. I painted a lot. I loved spending my time this way.
Here are some goals I had for July:
continue to draw, sketch, paint or do some artistic endeavor as often as I can – done and done
try to eat fresh food – i’d say this is mostly done too
do most of of HCOTF – i did most of it
support N with his camps + classes – i did this though it fell apart a bit
support D with essays + driving – did this too, as much as he wanted
Journal daily – did this!
Read a lot – so much
Support J – did this too, to the best of my ability
continue medication – done
Continue documenting the joy – done
Love my people – love them so very much
Scrap and OLW – i did both of these
Go outdoors, sit outside, be in the sunshine – i didn’t sit outside as much as before, but it’s been ok
dive deeper into ease, release, equanimity, space, possibility and see what you might want to do for each. ( still haven’t done this ) – still haven’t done this, not sure what that means
remember that it’s all bonus – i have, i’ve remembered this
Be ok with not getting much done, rest. – i’ve also rested so very much
be in the present moment, don’t count down the days – i would say i’ve also done a reasonably decent job of this
Also I got shots for my hip pain. I got the CPAP machine.
I was originally not supposed to have all of July off but my doctor recommended that I do and I am so grateful that she did. It was the right call. I finally feel fully wound down, and optimistic and looking forward to integrating work into my life again. Here’s hoping it’s a positive experience.
I will continue to try take it each one day at a time and look for the joy again and again. Because I know that I already have all I need and want. Everything else is bonus.
I had never heard of this series but I swallowed both of the books in one shot. I cannot wait for the third. Fantastic character development. Well written and interesting. Highly recommended.
“You’re an animal, Sibling Dex. You are not separate or other. You’re an animal. And animals have no purpose. Nothing has a purpose. The world simply is. If you want to do things that are meaningful to others, fine! Good! So do I! But if I wanted to crawl into a cave and watch stalagmites with Frostfrog for the remainder of my days, that would also be both fine and good. You keep asking why your work is not enough, and I don’t know how to answer that, because it is enough to exist in the world and marvel at it. You don’t need to justify that, or earn it. You are allowed to just live. That is all most animals do.”
What a gem of a book! It’s unlike anything I’ve read before. I don’t even know how to describe it. I’d read that this book felt like a hug and it really does.
“We don’t have to fall into the same category to be of equal value.”
I had a hard time getting into this book for some reason but once I did, it captured my heart and I loved every moment I spent with it. What a gift.
“Do you not find consciousness alone to be the most exhilarating thing? Here we are, in this incomprehensibly large universe, on this one tiny moon around this one incidental planet, and in all the time this entire scenario has existed, every component has been recycled over and over and over again into infinitely incredible configurations, and sometimes, those configurations are special enough to be able to see the world around them. You and I—we’re just atoms that arranged themselves the right way, and we can understand that about ourselves. Is that not amazing?”
Something drew me to this book and I wanted to read it the moment I saw the cover and read the blurb.
This is the story of seven children who find their mirror shining one day and can go through the mirror to a castle where a “wolf girl” tells them that they can visit this place until the beginning of the next school year (which is march in Japan) between the hours of 9-5 every day. They are looking for a key and then a wishing room. Only one wish will come true but that one wish will absolutely come true.
Each of these kids is not going to school. They are all struggling in their own ways. The story is told from the perspective of Kokoro who has been bullied and has quit going to school as a result.
The story is poignant, beautiful, unpredictable and so very full of love. I did not put it down once I started reading it and I will continue to think about it for a long time.
with gratitude to Erewhon/Hachette Book Group and edelweiss for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review
Beautiful story of a young love who get to meet each other again after many years. There’s so much explored here about art, being black, love, motherhood and more. Beautiful writing.