Friday, November 11, 2011

Nerd New Year

Happy Veterans Day and Happy Nerd New Year (11/11/11, with my hope being to post my doubled good wishes at 11:11 a.m., my time). You can celebrate and donate to charity here, at Nerd New Year, right on up to 11:11 p.m.

Meanwhile, thanks for everything to the veterans and the nerds.

I’m reading Home, finally, by Marilynne Robinson, the companion book to Gilead, a book I loved. I have to read things at the right time, and this is the right time.

I am powerfully moved by her quiet, character-driven prose. Here we are in Glory’s point of view, via third person limited omniscience:

Maybe great sorrow or guilt is simply to be accepted as absolution, like revelation. My iniquity/punishment is greater than I can bear. In the Hebrew, her father said, that one word had two meanings and we chose one of them, which may make it harder for us to understand why the Lord would have pardoned Cain and protected him, and let him go on with his life, marry, have a son, build a city.  His crime was his punishment, which had to mean he wasn’t such a villain after all.

I’m not going to make my 11:11 posting time, as I have to run out now…

Once again, Happy Veterans Day and Happy Nerd New Year.

6 comments:

Emily said...

Ah, a new years for nerds. What a relief!

seana graham said...

I am reading something at the right time too. Maybe that's an 11/11/11 thing.

Anonymous said...

The cover of that book makes my head feel cold. Seriously. They need an alternate cover.

I sit under the atomic clock at work and took a picture of 11:11:11 right on time. Got some cheers, too. smile.

sarah

Kathleen said...

Oh, I hope you will post that picture!

Kim said...

I am so glad you are reading Home.

Kathleen said...

Me, too, Kim. It is gorgeous and hitting the spot.