Every once in a while something extraordinary happens. On rare, rare occasions, I am allowed to sit at the feet of a master...a master of literature...of philosophy...a master of understanding of that strange, illusive thing we call "the human condition" This morning was one of those rare occasions brought to me from a truly unexpected source, Poputonian, writing for Digby's blog Hullabaloo.
No, I'm not heaping lavish praise on Poputonian, only the fact that he brought us the words of a true master, Kurt Vonnegut and excerpted parts of his latest work, Man Without a Country. So inspiring are the words, that later this morning, I will be traveling approximately 40 miles to the nearest Barnes and Noble's book store to purchase the book regardless of the price. (Those who know what a "tightwad" I am are probably gasping in disbelief.)
I once responded to the question, "What would you do if you won the lottery?" with the reply, "I would go back to college and stay there!" It's true. I would. There is a singular joy in learning just for the sake of learning. There is no feeling in the world as great as that you get when you feel all your brain cells working overtime to grasp difficult and obscure concepts and apply them. And finally, there isn't any better feeling than the "eureka!" moment when you finally "get it".
I've read all of Vonnegut's fiction. He has a way of providing me with eureka! moments in almost everything he writes and today's excerpts are no exception. Read the whole post that I linked above but in the meantime here are a few savory "appetizer" for you.
snip:
It so happens that idealism enough for anyone is not made of perfumed pink clouds. It is the law! It is the U.S. Constitution.
But I myself feel that our country, for whose Constitution I fought in a just war, might as well have been invaded by Martians and body snatchers. Sometimes I wish it had been. What has happened instead is that it was taken over by means of the sleaziest, low-comedy, Keystone Cops-styple coup d'etat imaginable.
I left out part of the discussion about how Vonnegut's (arguably) most famous work, Slaughterhouse Five, came to be. His explanation brought me another "eureka!" moment about Veterans. Read it. You'll understand.
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2 comments:
I just read the whole Hullabaloo post about Vonnegut. An absolutely splendid read! I loved the idea that parents and teachers were once in charge of stimulating their children's (or charges') imaginations, but now we don't need to do that anymore--we have circuits, cyber-networks, etc., to do this. As a former teacher who really believed in igniting those imaginations, I am constantly shocked and saddened that we have reached such a low point in our country and have failed a whole younger generation so miserably.
I thought you'd like that part...
I think Vonnegut is a National Treasure!
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