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Making Sense out of What We Can and more…

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Making Sense out of What We Can
you are the center of the universe
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Making Sense out of What We Can

by Dani Shapiro

A few days ago, while looking up a book I was interested in reading on Amazon.com, I suffered a momentary setback and broke one of my own rules—a rule I keep in place out of self-preservation: I searched my own name and began to read about myself online. In this particular case, since I was on Amazon, this involved reading reviews of some of my books. Amazon has this helpful little sidebar (not) in which someone browsing can see an example of a five star review and an example of a one star review.

Which do you think I was interested in?

Right. I clicked on the one star review for Slow Motion, the memoir I first published in 1998. When a writer is in an evil, self-Googling mood, she is not on the hunt for glowing reviews, positive feedback, happy and generous people. No. A writer in the midst of self-Googling is stuck in the muck of her own mind. She is flailing, tumbling head over heels down a slope that can only end in pain and insult. Pretentious crybaby, one reader offered. She...

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you are the center of the universe

by Danielle LaPorte

Part Two of a two-part exercise that began with considering that "You're not that important."

"The Red Wheelbarrow"
by William Carlos Williams

so much depends
upon

a red wheel
barrow

glazed with rain
water

beside the white
chickens.

. . . . . . .

So much is because of you. The letters you've written and sent, the touches, the kisses, the parties. Every grain of advice, set of directions, every breakfast for guests. That quarter you tossed into a panhandlers hat could have facilitated the call that turned it all around. Little kindnesses, grand gestures. The doing of your being imprinting place and time. Inevitably.

Consider everything you've ever been thanked for.
Every photo you've been in.
Every corner you've turned.
Every time you've signed your name.