Love this! We are dove tailing in our writing again this week as I also wrote about appreciating and noticing the ordinary. I listened to Jean Baptiste last night say that joy has to be cultivated. Have you seen Arrested Development? When he and his niece sing “Afternoon Delight.” Talk about karioke gone wrong.
“My uncle Alex Vonnegut, a Harvard-educated life insurance salesman who lived at 5033 North Pennsylvania Street, taught me something very important.
He said that when things were really going well we should be sure to NOTICE it. He was talking about simple occasions, not great victories: maybe drinking lemonade on a hot afternoon in the shade, or smelling the aroma of a nearby bakery; or fishing, and not caring if we catch anything or not, or hearing somebody all alone playing a piano really well in the house next door. Uncle Alex urged me to say this out loud during such epiphanies: ‘If this isn’t nice, I don’t know what is.’”
So many brilliant lines in this essay but the description of the movie being dripped in Axe body spray (did I get that right?) HOWLING! I am still howling. That might be the most perfect description ever. Sending it to all of my high school English teachers right now :)
Wow! This essay is wonderful. I know next to nothing about Fast and Furious but I am sooo joy-filled reading about your experiences. Such deft segues to universal truths and feelings weave in and out of your paragraphs. A perfect example of show-not-tell writing. Thanks for sharing your gifts with the world. (Definitely now going to google clips from the show!)
You know what put a big, stupid grin on my face? Reading this stellar essay, friend. Joy.
One Vite for a weekly subscriber post that asks what brings us similar moments of pure joy, or at least reminds us that pure joy is available.
Love this! We are dove tailing in our writing again this week as I also wrote about appreciating and noticing the ordinary. I listened to Jean Baptiste last night say that joy has to be cultivated. Have you seen Arrested Development? When he and his niece sing “Afternoon Delight.” Talk about karioke gone wrong.
“My uncle Alex Vonnegut, a Harvard-educated life insurance salesman who lived at 5033 North Pennsylvania Street, taught me something very important.
He said that when things were really going well we should be sure to NOTICE it. He was talking about simple occasions, not great victories: maybe drinking lemonade on a hot afternoon in the shade, or smelling the aroma of a nearby bakery; or fishing, and not caring if we catch anything or not, or hearing somebody all alone playing a piano really well in the house next door. Uncle Alex urged me to say this out loud during such epiphanies: ‘If this isn’t nice, I don’t know what is.’”
- Kurt Vonnegut ❤️
From the title of the essay, I never would have guessed the content. A JOYFUL surprise! Your depth knows no bounds ;)
So many brilliant lines in this essay but the description of the movie being dripped in Axe body spray (did I get that right?) HOWLING! I am still howling. That might be the most perfect description ever. Sending it to all of my high school English teachers right now :)
Wow! This essay is wonderful. I know next to nothing about Fast and Furious but I am sooo joy-filled reading about your experiences. Such deft segues to universal truths and feelings weave in and out of your paragraphs. A perfect example of show-not-tell writing. Thanks for sharing your gifts with the world. (Definitely now going to google clips from the show!)
The importance of joy! Such a lovely read :)
I also think this essay is a good reminder not to dismiss people’s passions and hobbies.