This book seemed perfect for me: interested in metaphysical philosophy and highly recommended by my best friend, whose interest in spirituality and growth is similar to mine. It is written by Don Miguel Ruiz, a shaman, and concerns the ways we have constructed our own version of reality – and the four “agreements” we can make with ourselves to start living in a much healthier and happier world. Here are the “agreements”: Be impeccable with your word. Don’t take anything personally. Don’t make assumptions. Always […]
Trauma, memory, and action
The play Blood Sky is ending its run at T. Schreiber Studio. I read the play in preparation for seeing it, but then a cross-country move prevented me from seeing it performed. This was a major loss, because I believe, like many plays, that Blood Sky would really come to life on stage. This is the story of Joley, a 30-year-old woman who is recounting her experiences at 14 and 18. She is played by three different women of different ages; at times, 30-year-old Joley talks directly to the […]
What is now? What is the story of now/Nao?
For the Time Being has two parallel narratives: Nao is a teenager in Japan, writing a journal that she states is her suicide note; and Ruth, a writer in an island off British Columbia, who has found Nao’s journal, along with some letters and other artifacts, washed ashore. As Ruth reads Nao’s diary, we find out Nao’s story: she lived most of her childhood in Sunnyvale, California while her father worked at a dotcom, and upon returning to Japan, she did not fit in. Her classmates […]
Redefining Realness and the ownership of story
Janet Mock has recently been publicizing her memoir, Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More, on multiple talk shows, some of which have interviewed her in ways that seem insensitive.
Meeting Nathaniel P.: get thee to a nunnery
Nate is a 30-ish writer from Brooklyn. He is what you would expect: part of a tribe of hipster-mildly pretentious-recovering nerdy underemployed writers. He
Wait until she sees my rich golden shaft
I recently saw Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, with Mark Rylance, on Broadway, in an all-male performance. It was sublime. We are seeing it again next week, so I read the play in preparation. I haven’t read the play – perhaps any Shakespeare – for at least 15 years. It turns out reading Shakespeare is like riding a bike. (Although if you have to get onto a bike after 15 years, it is far scarier than reading Shakespeare.) Viola and Sebastian are twins, shipwrecked and separately rescued. […]