Hi folks!
I am a suspicious person by nature (or nurture?), but I was very pleasantly surprised by a recent present from Brad. Now! I never seem to be able to predict or understand Brad. He just turns up! Sometimes he seems almost scared of me, but he is much bigger than I am so that doesn’t make sense. But Deb likes and respects him a lot for all the help that he and his wife have given her with her autistic son, Rory. I appreciate that too, as Rory is a real handful. I just don’t seem to be able to work out where Brad is coming from. I have now decided that he is coming from somewhere else to that which I understand, but, as we say in Feldenkrais, because a thing does not feel right does not mean that it is not right. Brad’s recent out-of-the-blue present was exactly right for me, a book by Amby Burfoot entitled The Runner’s Guide To The Meaning Of Life.
Now! This is a great little book, full of quotable wisdom such as “Life is a marathon, not a sprint; so pace yourself accordingly.”
Maybe this is true of my understanding of Brad! I’ll keep working on it, but thanks again my friend!
Cheers,
Kevin
P.S. I have just cooked polenta (gently fried in garlic-flavored olive oil with some Lea & Perrin’s Sauce), scrambled local farm eggs, and steamed organic local farm-grown beetroot leaves, topped with Paul Newman’s pineapple salsa. It tasted great!
P.P.S. The best book I ever read on the Nature versus Nurture debate was written by Steven Pinker, and it was entitled ‘The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial Of Human Nature.’ Fascinating and almost as good as my lunch!
Hi Kevin,
I just thought I’d “turn up” here on your website. I’m certainly glad you are enjoying the book. I stumbled across that one recently and you came into my mind immediately as someone who would appreciate it. As for you and I being different, this is certainly true. But what we do have in common is a deep love for a few of the same people (albeit a different KIND of love). That alone, I think, would put us on the same team at the end of the day when it comes to matters of true importance.
Still, just for fun, I’ve ordered this book http://www.amazon.com/Delicate-Art-Dancing-Porcupines-Appreciate/dp/0830713336/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1305322197&sr=8-1 so that we can try to quantify/typify our differences. I’ve said before I suspect we are polar opposites in personality, but, as you have so eloquently pointed out above, “different” does not necessarily mean “bad”. Perhaps, understanding one another a little more will allow us to be better “dance partners”. When the book comes in, I’ll pop by — or, hell, I may do something crazy and call ahead — and we can take the little test over tea. I look forward to it.
Brad
P.S. To clarify for your readers, I am not “bigger” than you — only fatter. That doesn’t really count unless we are having a splash competition at the swimming pool.