Testing

As fun and immediately gratifying Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook are, it's time to bring back the blog. If you stumble across this post and don't see anything else, feel free to bug me and call me out on it.

Life....and Death

Unfortunately, my life has been touched by several loved ones who have taken their life recently.  Its one of the things that goes with coming from a state with a high suicide rate and well...just living in this cruel world.  A few weeks ago, a friend I grew up with took his own life.  This morning, an old favorite single, Rhett Miller's song, "The Believer, (For Elliott Smith) popped into my head."  Elliot Smith was another favorite singer who took his own life. Rhett's tribute to his friend is poignant, if you listen closely.

On Kent Haruf

Kent Haruf February 24, 1943 – November 30, 2014

One of my favorite living authors is unfortunately, now one of my favorite deceased authors. Kent Haruf, was quietly mesmerizing in each of his five published novels (I can't wait to read the sixth which will be published this Spring.) Haruf's books take place in fictional (but based on his decades of living in Eastern Colorado) Holt County. Haruf has the same quality of many of our greatest writers of taking characters and turning them into complex beings.

The following article published by Granta this fall is a beautifully written article by Kent Haruf.  If you get a chance, please read this too.

Haruf's Novels were:
The Tie That Binds (1984)
Where You Once Belonged (1990)
Plainsong (1999)
Eventide (2004)
Benediction (2013)
Our Souls at Night (to be published in 2015) 

YouTube Video of the Day: Elvis singing "How Great thou art" and Elvis's father at the end.

For this Sunday morning I leave you "How Great thou Art" by Elvis.  This video was released shortly after his death and is worth watching....Elvis's father's appreciation for the fans at the end is touching.

Quote of the Day: Brady Udall

"Whether we like it or not, polygamy is not only a part of our past, it’s part of our present, our scripture and theology, which both suggest it will be part of our future. If we are to respect our heritage and be honest about who we are as a people, we must acknowledge polygamy’s place in our church and culture. And when we see a polygamist family among us, we must remember we are looking in the mirror; we are looking at ourselves."

 Brady Udall. Found here:  

Brady is the author of "The Lonely Polygamist," one of my favorite books I've read in the past five years.    

Quote of the Day

"To recognize our bias toward error should teach us modesty and reflection, and to forgive it should help us avoid the inhumanity of thinking we ourselves are not as fallible as though who, in any instance, seem most at fault. Science can give us knowledge, but it cannot give us wisdom. Nor can religion, until it puts aside nonsense and distraction and becomes itself again." Marilynne Robinson from "When I was a Child I read Books."

Another Gem from StoryCorps

What an amazing big brother.