Dearest All~
I hope you all had a lovely holiday. At the very least, a good lie-down. At the most, a frolic with family and friends, good eats in the tradition of autumn harvest-looking-forward to a long winter sojourn. I think that is the celebratory spirit of the passing season.
In between frolic and good lie-downs I prepared the garden for winter, hired the chimney sweeps who found I was about to burn my house down. Fixed that. Cleaned the inside of the house from top to bottom. Hence, my letter to you is my holiday from pondering Evil vs Beauty or vice versa, if you like that better. Along with my winter prep, I took time to do some good reading.
I just finished Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by JD Vance. This book is a timely must-read. Vance hails from Appalachia and the rust belt of the midwest and illuminates the mindscape of rural American citizens. It is a page-turner. l finished this read feeling grateful for his affection for the people tinctured with his respectful skepticism about some of their choices in living.
Now I am reading The Once and Future King by T.H. White. It is a delight in active imagination, written with great heart and laced with archetypal characters who do not realize they are shaping the character of the soon-to-be-king, Arthur. The young boy is under the tutelage of Merlyn, his teacher and protector. His natural empathy matures into compassion. Adventures abound as he is transformed into various species of living things by Merlyn’s wizardry.
I found a little story in White’s book that Merlyn tells the Wart (Arthur) I thought would be great to share with you. It is about Elijah and the Rabbi. I Googled the story to see if it’s in fact recognized as an allegory and sure enough there it lay amongst a hundred others. The recording follows my letter to you.
http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/404895/jewish/The-Rabbi-and-the-Cow.htm
Bless you all! Thank you so much for all the love you share in your emails, cards, and most welcome visits. Please do not be upset if it takes me a little time to reply. Got to have my lie-downs, you know.
Your loving friend, –Peggy