Hello, world
You're terribly beautiful.
LET’S JUST SAY the days between my last newsletter and this one have been full. So much has happened…in my life, in the world, in the universe…
Maybe if I tiptoe through the parenting thicket just right, if I make all the right choices and set all the right boundaries and use just the right tone of voice and assign all the right chores and support without hovering and fill my own cup without emptying theirs… if I do it all just right, maybe that cosmic certificate I’ve been waiting for will finally arrive in the mail, the one that guarantees they’ll be safe.
Spring transformed my neighborhood into a Thomas Kincaid painting, the biggest demonstration in American history took place…
…the President of the United States declared war, the Artemis II launch made us hold our breath, a baby arrived, a friend’s father departed…
I have a friend whose wife just went into labor. They just left for the hospital. When I think about what the next 24 hours might hold for them…and for the Artemis crew members…and for another friend whose beloved father is in hospice…I’m just…speechless.
We live in a world of terrible beauty and mystery.
Does life ever render you speechless? Do you know what I mean by terrible beauty?
Today’s the first day I’ve been able to write anything longer than a note. I get the irony of a newsletter about being speechless, but I wanted to put it out there in case you, too, are immobilized by this moment. The immensity and surreality of it all. The juxtaposition of cherry blossoms and bombs, the highest and lowest expressions of “America,” just all of it, everywhere, all at once.
You’re not alone. Perhaps I’m saying this to remind myself I’m not alone, either. ✹
🗄️ RELATED READING
🔗 NOTES OF NOTE
I came up with a hack for using forgotten gift cards and so far I’ve gotten “free money” to buy movie tickets and seeds for my cutting garden!
Listen to this fascinating conversation between Ezra Klein and Michael Pollan about consciousness. Two smart, smart guys open to learning. (This is where my head has been! No wonder I’m speechless.)
I made this cucumber salad the other day and it was HEAVEN. Try it and let me know what you think. I took the paywall off the dressing recipe.
Thank you, as always, for this spot in your inbox. I’ll see you in the comments.
Parent of Adults by Asha Dornfest is a free newsletter with the option to become a supporter. Comments are open to all. Back issues move behind the paywall after a few months. The paywall unlocks for paid subscribers & frequent sharers as a thank you for helping me keep this newsletter free + ad-free.
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I'm having that same week. Only my mom died a few weeks ago (3 1/2?), a young relative got mobility devices, the world is on fire, we watched the live stream of the moon flyby, I remembered my mom putting pins in a globe and running string around it, a new pin for where the astronauts were today, my extended family is having a catastrophic blowup (not directly related to my mom's death), and yep, world still on absolute fire. Beautiful messy disastrous painful tender beloved.
"The juxtaposition of cherry blossoms and bombs" 😭