The There There Letter: Bountiful, Benevolent, and Bookish

They gave each other a smile with a future in it. (Ring Lardner)
DAH is me, David Anthony Hance.
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First up this week: Bountiful …
I'm a big believer in abundance. Glass half-full rather than half-empty. Always more pie in the pan. Of course, I understand certain supplies run out. But I keep an innate feeling that there is more of something out there, waiting for discovery. I may be naïve, but I aim for gracious generosity in all. Hopefulness and optimism are wonderful watchwords. The news of the day, and the limiting thoughts of my "warner" friends and acquaintances, are too negative for me. We all know warners, those who always seem to say, "Don't get your hopes up. So much could go wrong." I can imagine unhappy outcomes. But I work not to do so. Thinking bounty is better than thinking barren.
Second up this week, Benevolent …
According to Merriam-Webster: "marked by a kindly disposition to promote the happiness and prosperity of others or by generosity in and pleasure at doing good works." Riding the back of my belief in bounty I always expect that other options are out there. Even if the options don't look appetizing at first. A happy belief in the benevolence of fortune providing an upbeat unguent in seemingly unfortunate circumstances. I often call to mind this, from Tom Stoppard's screenplay for the movie Shakespeare in Love:
HENSLOWE: Mr. Fennyman, let me explain about the theatre business. The natural condition is one of insurmountable obstacles on the road to imminent disaster. Believe me, to be closed by the plague is a bagatelle in the ups and downs of owning a theatre.
FENNYMAN: So what do we do?
HENSLOWE: Nothing. Strangely enough, it all turns out well.
FENNYMAN: How?
HENSLOWE: I don’t know, it's a mystery.
Third up this week, Bookish …
So many books, so little reading time. I'm sure it seems I must be reading all the time. I certainly churn through pages every week. Except that the bounty of books before me is so large compared with my capacity to absorb them. Fiction and non-fiction. Light and heavy. I have preferences. Many are mentioned in my missives. I like a bit of humor. I dislike negativity. I'm not a particular fan of biography. And I question autobiography (I suspect the vagaries of ego and memory). And I really like short chapters. I often read with an end-point in mind, particularly at bedtime. The short-chapter Pot Thief books are perfect for me before sleep. A hint of humor, chapters short enough to read two or three without getting bogged down. Yes, I'm a bit bookish.
A bookish mystery …

I’m a sucker for bookish books. And I like mystery novels. A page-turner is also attractive. This one had me hooked all three ways.
"Here's another bookish murder mystery. This one is set in the reading room at the Boston Public Library. When, out of nowhere, a scream shatters the calm, security guards rush to investigate straight away. They ask everyone else to remain where they are until they can figure out what happened. While stuck inside the reading room, four strangers who just happened to be sitting at the same table strike up a conversation. Each of them has their own reason for being in the reading room that day. And each of them has a secret. One of them is a murderer." (BookRiot.com)
Bookish because there are several books being written. The mystery is dialogue-heavy. I like that. Shortish chapters. I also like that. There's more than one story embedded (it's only occasionally difficult to keep them separately in mind ... if you read it, you'll see why). From the half-way point the peril in which one principal character is placed ratchets ever higher until the startlingly swift denouement.
And a bit more …
"The Laughing Heart"
By Charles Bukowski
Your life is your life
Don’t let it be clubbed into dank submission.
Be on the watch.
There are ways out.
There is a light somewhere.
It may not be much light but
It beats the darkness.
Be on the watch.
The gods will offer you chances.
Know them.
Take them.
You can’t beat death but
You can beat death in life, sometimes.
And the more often you learn to do it,
The more light there will be.
Your life is your life.
Know it while you have it.
You are marvelous
The gods wait to delight
In you.
And that's all for this week.
From Mary Oliver's "Sometimes"
Instructions for living a life:
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it.
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