A Life and Literature : April 2014

29 April, 2014

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28 April, 2014

Book Review: The Virgin Sucides

Jeffrey Eugenides' The Virgin Suicides is one of those rare novels that you only come across a few times in your life. It is compelling, startling, intriguing and beautiful all at once. This novel tells the story of the terrible fate of the five Lisbon sisters; Lux, Mary, Cecilia, Bonnie and Therese. That is all I am going to say about the plot, because if I elaborated then I would spoil parts of the book! I am just going to say is that this book is absolutely great. In addition to its strange plot, The Virgin Suicides is written in a unique style, making it stand apart from others books that appeal to the same audience. It is definitely an original.

I would recommend this book to people who think they can handle it, because I will warn you, it is not for the faint hearted. This book deals with topics like abuse, emotional trauma, neglect, and (of course) suicide. Although it may be beautiful, it is also ghastly.

Nonetheless, I am surely going to add it to my list of favorite novels.

Photo taken by me.

19 April, 2014

Love Letters

The next time you have feelings for someone and want to tell them but are too terrified to say it to their face, write it down. Be old fashioned and spontaneous. There are few things more romantic than a handwritten love note. Spending some of your time on someone else in order to make them happy is lovely, and these types of letters are enjoyable to write.

It may be out of your comfort zone, but that's one of the things that makes it special. Doing something out of the ordinary and going against the status quo can be invigorating. Giving someone a love letter shows them that you are not afraid to put yourself out there, it shows that you are willing to risk your own relaxation or peace of mind just to tell them something.

These types of letters don't have to contain a proclamation of love. They can also be just a note to your husband, wife, girlfriend, boyfriend, or whomever, that shows them how you are feeling in the moment. Love is a wonderful thing, and giving someone a handwritten note is one way you can make your own experience with it unique to you and your significant other.

The inspiration for this post - the letters that my great grandparents sent to each other before they were married.

15 April, 2014

West Coast Loving

Photos taken by me.

06 April, 2014

Into the Woods

Photos taken by/belong to me.

04 April, 2014

A Twisted View of the World

Sometimes I think my view of the world is warped. Occasionally it will seem terrible, like everybody and everything is out to get me. But on other days it seems like I am the luckiest person in the world. Why do these extreme contrasts exist? Why can't a day be "just ok" or "so-so" instead of "amazing" or "absolutely atrocious"?

Well, I actually kind of have the answers to these questions! A while back, I learned that (psychologically) humans need twice as many good things than bad things to happen to them in a day so that it qualifies as a Good Day. So that means that if someone had equal parts of exciting and dissapointing things occur within twenty-four hours, it would appear to be a Bad Day. This may seem twisted, but it is actually a good example of how the human brain works. People focus such a large amount of their energy on the bad things in life, that they can forget about the good.

Last week I got visibly stressed when I was with some of my friends. One of them noticed, looked me straight in the face and said "It's the small things in life," knowing that it would get me to smile. And it worked. It's a good thing to remember; ninety-nine percent of the time, there is good in any situation. We all just have to do the best with what we are dealt.