“How is it I remember
knowing that I would live forever?
Isn’t it strange
how truth can change?”
- Toad the Wet Sprocket

Before I get muddled in contemplation, I want to send an acknowledgement to my mother, who, 36 years ago today, completed what probably remains to this day the most harrowing 28-hour stretch of her life. Not only that, but she did it without drugs. And at the end of that ordeal all she had to show for it was a screaming baby boy. But bless her heart, that was exactly what she wanted.

And so here I am.

I quoted the lyric at the top of this post for a reason. It’s one that’s been rattling around in my head since I first heard it over a decade ago - at a point prior to my realization that I wouldn’t live forever. Like many other people who were once young, I dreaded losing the illusory cloak of invincibility. I thought it would be so depressing to come to grips with such a passive-aggressive foe like mortality. Surprisingly, it hasn’t been.

To be honest, I’ve led a pretty charmed life. I’ve probably reaped a good bit more than I’ve sown. With the realization of life’s finite nature, I’ve been able to see this more clearly.

I’ve always been a melancholy person, but I don’t wallow like I did when I thought the world was owed to me and had the right to demand nothing from me. I appreciate more now, a trend I hope continues into the future.

A while back I was motivated to put together some of the haiku I’d written as a gift for a friend. I scribbled about seventy verses as legibly as I could in a pocket-sized Moleskine cahier. It was well-received, much to my delight. My friend told me I should write a book of haiku. I pointed at the one in her hands and said that I just had written a book of haiku. She said she meant a real book.

While I’m not sure there’s much demand for a book of my haiku (or anything else, for that matter), I have been flattered on occasion by similar exhortations to write a real book. On the other hand, I think it was Flannery O’Connor who, when asked if she thought the universities stifled writers, replied that they didn’t stifle enough of them. As she said, “There’s many a best seller that could have been prevented by a good teacher.” - a sentiment I’m sure she’d have about the blogging phenomenon as well, had she lived to see it.

Flannery O’Connor’s loathing aside, I stumbled across a reasonably cheap, effective way to get my little book of haiku printed. So that’s what I did, adding a bit of non-haiku poetry to the end of it. It’s mostly done for family and a few friends who’ve expressed an interest in it, but it’s there for anyone else who may be interested as well.

If you want a copy (printed or downloadable), click here to pick one up from LuLu.com.

Or, if you might be inclined to offer me your own review of the book (as flattering or brutally honest as you like), I’d be glad to send you the downloadable version of the book for free. Let me know if you’re interested.

I know I’ve never done the Friday random ten thing on this site before, but I was feeling a sense of nostalgia for the old days, so…

Angels on a Passing Train - Marah
Little Martha - Allman Brothers Band
Young Professionals - Stargazer Lily
Munich - Editors
Rise - The Frames
James - Huffamoose
Have You Seen My Love? - Barenaked Ladies
Kites without Strings - 77s
Leave - Glen Hansard
Bella Maria de Mi Alma - Los Lobos

Surprisingly strong set. Starts well. Finishes strong (the last three are favorites).

Other listing fools: Ben, Cziltang, Jessica

the card below was sent my way by a fellow Modern Letter Project correspondent (with artwork apparently designed by her fiancé)