Although it looks like all I do is take pictures, Levi and I do get out. We go on walks, read books, listen to books on tape, make dinner, clean the house, talk about the wide world, watch the baby quail attack our window with glee.
Since my last real post, we've read:
Truman Madsen's The Life and Teachings of the Prophet Joseph--a beautiful set of lectures. I had never really considered Joseph Smith to be a window into the reality of the atonement before. Because he was the prophet of the restoration his work does enable others to know Christ more. I believe in prophets. That doesn't sound like a monumental statement; I've believed in prophets for most of my life and I struggled for years to know about the truth of Joseph Smith's mission specifically (that story later perhaps). I believe in modern day prophets: not just people with visions or a neighbor who calls himself a prophet, but those particularly called of God to lead His children back into His outstretched arms. I think you have to find out for yourself if a person is a prophet through prayer--I think we have a responsibility to do so, actually. (On a less pious note: I believe Moses and I would have been great friends, but Abraham and I probably would have kept our relationship distanced). In order to be a prophet your life and teachings must match, but prophets are still just mortals. Imperfect humans. Isn't that amazing?
Kevin Hinckley's Burying Our Swords--okay, I wouldn't recommend this one because it is pretty surface level and agenda driven and lacks literary quality (yes, the awful sentences distracted me! I felt bad for their construction) but it isn't terrible. Moral of the book: to improve your situation and relationships, start with yourself and the scriptures. A good moral. This was a quick read, though, and Levi likes to listen to me even at 2 a.m. (that's our scripture time, though--not novels. Scripture and poetry and night, everything else during the day).
Bram Stoker's Dracula--Oh! This is fun. Wesley and I both listened to it from librivox.org (Check out LibriVox--audio books in the public domain, I'm considering volunteering). The "traditional" interpretation of Dracula does not follow the book. The book is significantly better (although, I admit, some of the sentences could use some work. The story is good enough to carry it, though). I wonder how often such works are misinterpreted. We think we know what something is about, then we finally look into it ourselves and bam! We've been wrong the entire time. Dracula is not a horror novel as much as an adventure taken from multiple points of view. Wesley and I enjoyed talking about it chapter by chapter. Good discussions if nothing else. Read it if you're looking for an enjoyable, light, classic read.
Jon Meacham's American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers, and teh Making of a Nation--Lovely piece. The more I learn about Washington the more I like him. The more I learn about Jefferson the more uncomfortable I am. Brilliant people needed to come together in order to create this nation. They were geniuses in their own ways. They had their weaknesses and preferences. But at the core Washington was fundamentally good, and Jefferson...confused? I'm not sure. Hypocrisy weighs on me. I doubt anyone else could have written the Declaration of Independence--our country needed Jefferson and needs his legacy still. I think, though that Abraham and I would have been closer friends than this founding father. An interesting aspect of this book is the concept of a public "gospel" or the spiritual foundation in which our pluralistic society trusts (most of the time). The making of a nation is fundamentally spiritual: not something I'd really considered before.
Otherwise, I've been examining Levi's knuckles. They stretch and bend. The wrinkles double up on each other. They arch out too much like mine. I love his knuckles. Will the time come when I forget how much I love his knuckles because we're doing other things? Because I'm not holding him close constantly, memorizing his parts, exclaming over his growth? What do my parents think when they look at my knuckles? Do they remember the changes in me or feel the blossoming love that gasps, "I couldn't have made this beautiful person!" Will I continue to marvel at his joints and hinges as he develops and fills them with mud, experience, and large life?
I read Dracula as a freshmen in high school, and quite enjoyed it. It was not at all what I had anticipated. We had this fantastic, nutty lady for our teacher, and we went through it in detail, chapter by chapter. It was really awesome.
ReplyDeleteI felt the same way you did -- pleasantly surprised -- the first time I read Frankenstein as well.