Weekend Reading

Ater a pretty intense week I'm soaking up this Saturday morning. I'm watching doves do it in my front yard, Mister Scooty Boots has learned how to open our kitchen cabinets and is making himself a kitty condo fully equipped amongst my Vitamix and KitchenAid, and Jeremy and I are sipping on cinnamon orange black tea. Here are a few articles I've come across this week that you might find interesting.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

E.B. White on Egoism and the Art of the Essay

Just in the past 6 months have I really started thinking of myself as a writer. Which is a bit uncomfortable because blogging is my medium – so it doesn't feel important and can sometimes come across as self-indulgent. As I was reading this article I simply replaced the word "essay" with "blogging" and was able to relate. 

I am not fooled about the place of the essay in twentieth-century American letters — it stands a short distance down the line. The essayist, unlike the novelist, the poet, and the playwright, must be content in his self-imposed role of second-class citizen. A writer who has his sights trained on the Nobel Prize or other earthly triumphs had best write a novel, a poem, or a play, and leave the essayist to ramble about, content with living a free life and enjoying the satisfactions of a somewhat undisciplined existence.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Private Lives

My friend Erin sent me this article written about life on the secluded Waldron island just off the San Juan islands. This island has one port, no electricity or plumbing, one dirt road and a one room school house. So of course it's totally fascinating. It's a long read – I'm only half way through as of right now and can't wait to see how it ends. 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

P.S. Speaking of my friend Erin – she has an online magazine for women in design called GLIMPSE. Each magazine features a graphic designer including myself, Emily Thompson, Eva Black and more! 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

A Guide to Practical Compassion

Leo Babatua of Zen Habits never fails to blow my mind with his concise and simple advice on living on minimal life. Today it is a guide to practical compassion, which caught my attention. I didn't know much about compassion until I married Jeremy – compassion is a quality that Jeremy completely embodies. And through his example, I've tried to become a more compassionate person. And now that I'm diving head first into life coaching my number one job duty is to be compassionate. 

To practice compassionate actions, you start with yourself. A lot of people see suffering in the world and feel bad about it, but they don’t know how to take action. The best way to take action is to take action with yourself. The only person you can control with any degree of success is yourself.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Let me know what you've been reading lately or if any articles have caught your attention.