Books I’ve Read & Places I’ve Loved: September 2017
Originally published on September 28th, 2017
Well, that was September. A month set aside for getting used to school again, but also a month for birthdays, small school trips, and a few good books.
BOOKS I'VE READ
Charles Bukowski On Love edited by Abel Debritto
I still can't decide if I like Charles Bukowski. There are some of his poems that I absolutely adored, most of which were the ones he wrote for his daughter. Then again there were others that made me roll my eyes. I'm glad I read it, though, but I'm not entirely sure I recommend it. I think I'm going to look for some other books of his because I've heard that since he wrote and published so much not everything is as good as everything else. The poems I liked the most were: for the 18 months of Marina Louise, a definition, one for old snaggle-tooth, and for the little one.
Rilke's Book of Hours translated by Anita Barrows & Joanna Macy
I bought this book towards the end of the last school year. To be completely honest with you, I bought it because I was bored with reading the Bible and wanted to try something a little different. I've always loved reading Psalms because they're basically poetry, and this seemed to be like that only, in my opinion, more relatable. Psalms comfort me, while Rilke makes me feel like I'm not crazy. This book has been very grounding for me, and this month I developed the habit of reading three or four of the poems a night. I also have a soft spot in my heart for bilingual versions of poetry, and since this had the original German printed on the left side, I liked it even more.
Someone Knows My Name by Lawrence Hill
This year, my school has a book club on Friday mornings. Out of all the options for Friday electives, this one appealed to me the most for reasons that are probably fairly obvious. This was the first book we've read, and although it took me awhile to get into it, I'm really glad I read it. I will say this, though, don't read this if you're looking for a heartwarming story to read before bed (I have many recommendations for such books if you're curious). This is a book that talks about the slave trade, and follows one girl named Aminata throughout her late childhood through adulthood. It chronicles her experience being a slave and, **spoiler alert**, how her life goes once she escapes. Although it isn't an easy read, it's a good one.
PLACES I'VE LOVED
Luna's Cafe, Sacramento
In the middle of this month I went to a poetry open mic with my mom and one of my friends from school. None of us had ever been to something like it and it was honestly one of my favorite parts of the year so far. I spent three hours listening to poets share their stories, and it was such a beautiful way to start my weekend. I definitely want to go back soon, and I'm excited to be able to.
Leoni Meadows, CA
Since I'm the Religious Vice President for SA this year, I was able to go to the annual Leadership Conference. Although it's a trip meant for learning how to lead others and get stuff done, the weekend ended up being something else entirely for me. I saw people I hadn't seen in YEARS (there's a post coming soon about a conversation I had that meant a lot to me), and I got to finally sit and be still for a few moments. The week leading up to the conference had been intense. Lots had been happening at my school and my personal life in general, and getting the chance to simply be was needed.