Note the book review and what it says about current conditions. Eric
[https://www.nytimes.com/FrankBruni]<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/U0XM3zxxHAx4JUV9OLxsug~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TAaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vY29sdW1uL2ZyYW5rLWJydW5pP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTkzJmVtYz1lZGl0X2ZiXzIwMjEwNTE5Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTMxMTE5Jm5sPWZyYW5rLWJydW5pJnJlZ2lfaWQ9MTE5MTM0NTkzJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9NTg0NDQmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPTUxOWRkNmU0NzdiNjFkYjAxYjZjMDc2ZDdjNTdlNzU2VwNueXRCCmCjBjalYM46evRSFmVyaWNwcnVzc2VsbEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~>
May 19, 2021
If you missed the previous newsletter, you can read it
here<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/tg9aPuiXXal5IVpOWxwTuw~~/AAAAAQA~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~>.
[https://ci6.googleusercontent.com/proxy/W0xZY-uJvuwYmx21tkNMlHa0zDkZO5td5-AAzn3sMmrTFXaHaJL2fbrWdX_yo4PiZAJvlVTzt_M-kAQbMl_N1gbreuEWCHqZU0gicgMEZ5tZrc5hHBbdQYUMj1hYwCIh7kE1LTgzY2gNI1PjCrLf6J69HgxkLntq5q1XgjVrYwwaxuKfJdNvEOMFh-Qyhe6Rw553Bjl9VE7p9USHDo8W8bU=s0-d-e1-ft#https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/05/19/opinion/19bruni-newsletter3/merlin_187707117_3ce9a8c8-77da-4566-bf44-5402c23ac4de-articleLarge.jpg]
T.J. Kirkpatrick for The New York Times
President Biden was talking about Israel the other day, and I almost had to
strain to hear his voice. It was that soft, and it complemented the languid
pace of his words.
The subject was bloody, agonizing, unsolvable: the conflict between Israelis
and Palestinians, which had taken an especially violent turn and killed many
people over the previous
days<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/LROw4RD751OYgXzXl-i_Lg~~/AAAAAQA~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>.
Biden had reason to scream, cause to cry.
But his timbre and cadence brought to mind a lullaby.
There’s something to that.
We live in polarized, adrenalized times that hardly need the turbocharging of a
president who foams at the mouth. Wasn’t Donald Trump’s presidency proof of
that?
Most Democrats certainly thought so, and several of their party’s candidates
for president in 2020 promised a post-Trump slump on the unbridled-passion
front. I remember in particular Senator Michael Bennet’s
pledge<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/E6FWNYCM9Fdh8lbxnkYBaQ~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TaaHR0cHM6Ly90d2l0dGVyLmNvbS9taWNoYWVsYmVubmV0L3N0YXR1cy8xMTU4ODA2ODQ1OTUzMzIzMDA4P2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTkzJmVtYz1lZGl0X2ZiXzIwMjEwNTE5Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTMxMTE5Jmxhbmc9ZW4mbmw9ZnJhbmstYnJ1bmkmcmVnaV9pZD0xMTkxMzQ1OTMmc2VnbWVudF9pZD01ODQ0NCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NTE5ZGQ2ZTQ3N2I2MWRiMDFiNmMwNzZkN2M1N2U3NTZXA255dEIKYKMGNqVgzjp69FIWZXJpY3BydXNzZWxsQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>
to be a president whom you didn’t have to think about for days on end.
Well, Biden is that president — sort of. I’m qualifying my assessment because
the magnitude of the challenges facing the United States and the ambition of
his prescriptions are certainly front of mind. But he himself as a player and a
potentate isn’t, and that’s partly intentional.
For the sake of national healing, in the interests of governing, he has turned
down the emotional temperature in his administration. My Times colleague Annie
Karni noted one aspect of that in an incisive recent
article<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/3sbYHJz_gxbNlBkdLREMCg~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TraHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMS8wNS8xOC91cy9wb2xpdGljcy9iaWRlbi13aGl0ZS1ob3VzZS1jZWxlYnJpdHktc3RhZmYuaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD05MyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9mYl8yMDIxMDUxOSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD0zMTExOSZubD1mcmFuay1icnVuaSZyZWdpX2lkPTExOTEzNDU5MyZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTU4NDQ0JnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD01MTlkZDZlNDc3YjYxZGIwMWI2YzA3NmQ3YzU3ZTc1NlcDbnl0QgpgowY2pWDOOnr0UhZlcmljcHJ1c3NlbGxAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA>
about “the overall culture of the Biden White House,” which includes “the
least personality-driven West Wing in decades.”
“President Biden is undoing a longstanding Washington tradition in which staff
members enjoy their own refracted fame,” she wrote. Such celebrity is a
distraction. It’s grist for social-media tempests that compromise the mission
at hand.
Biden sets the retiring, reticent example. He leads by stepping back. The big
political story last week was Kevin McCarthy v. Liz Cheney, and Biden for the
most part didn’t touch it. He doesn’t need to be in the first or even second
paragraph of every news story. He doesn’t want to.
That’s a striking change for him, as I’ve written
before<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/yI8YKxe9jsmCGLc-eFWHfg~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TZaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMS8wMy8xOS9vcGluaW9uL2pvZS1iaWRlbi1wcmVzaWRlbnQuaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD05MyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9mYl8yMDIxMDUxOSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD0zMTExOSZubD1mcmFuay1icnVuaSZyZWdpX2lkPTExOTEzNDU5MyZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTU4NDQ0JnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD01MTlkZDZlNDc3YjYxZGIwMWI2YzA3NmQ3YzU3ZTc1NlcDbnl0QgpgowY2pWDOOnr0UhZlcmljcHJ1c3NlbGxAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA>.
It’s an even more striking change for the country. In terms of presidential
bearing, we’ve gone from a screech to a whisper. I for one am relishing the
hush.
Continue reading the main
story<https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#m_2706164084487225499_a11y-skip-0>
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A Former President’s Graceful Exit
[https://ci4.googleusercontent.com/proxy/D_UyKCktk7CH5TIGu1gEBF6TmvDfoqnwKCFiNNi2B58E_NinUv-VzN72V6Tj-iS5dt8bcYxBYGSlCt6uSpWIFrcrIWlAEMSTSWthvzN3oBz_5UrDiSH_CWJRJR5EwIjOGvbd-EFLtKb5R-QvdYapdU3Klm8jsXjBSiZq3RzZ=s0-d-e1-ft#https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/05/19/opinion/19bruni-newsletter2/19bruni-newsletter2-articleLarge.jpg]
Jean Becker (right) has written a loving tribute to the 41st president.Cover
courtesy Twelve Books, Grand Central Publishing; author photo by Mark Burns.
In the first stretch of “The Man I Knew: The Amazing Story of George H.W.
Bush’s Post-Presidency,” Jean Becker makes clear how concerned Bush was about
that post-presidency. He wanted to behave in a proper fashion and adopt the
right perspective. He even wrote a sort of instruction manual for himself,
listing his values and priorities.
Continue reading the main
story<https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#m_2706164084487225499_a11y-skip-1>
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I won’t go into the detail that Becker’s sweet and revealing book does. I’ll
just say this: Bush wasn’t merely figuring out how to navigate a potentially
anticlimactic part of his life. He was figuring out how to ace old age. In that
respect, his experience was universal, and it’s a model of dispensing with
grudges, banishing regrets, listening to your truest desires and enjoying the
physical abilities that remain rather than measuring them against the past.
Becker, a former journalist, was Bush’s chief of staff from soon after he left
the White House until his death in
2018<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/-4wJmfG-wrITHgO7br0hqA~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TdaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAxOC8xMS8zMC91cy9wb2xpdGljcy9nZW9yZ2UtaHctYnVzaC1kaWVzLmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9OTMmZW1jPWVkaXRfZmJfMjAyMTA1MTkmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9MzExMTkmbmw9ZnJhbmstYnJ1bmkmcmVnaV9pZD0xMTkxMzQ1OTMmc2VnbWVudF9pZD01ODQ0NCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NTE5ZGQ2ZTQ3N2I2MWRiMDFiNmMwNzZkN2M1N2U3NTZXA255dEIKYKMGNqVgzjp69FIWZXJpY3BydXNzZWxsQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>.
She respected him deeply and loved him dearly: That’s obvious on almost every
page of her book, which will be published on June 1. “The Man I Knew” isn’t
intended as an objective appraisal of his character and legacy. It’s a gushing
tribute, into which she has packed anecdotes that affirm how goofy, corny and
mischievous even a person who rises all the way to the most powerful office in
the world can be.
My read of it as a parable of aging has more do with my own fixations than with
Becker’s focus. I find myself thinking increasingly about the challenges and
consolations of the twilight years, a subject to which a book of mine coming
out early next year is devoted. So I was especially intrigued by Bush’s
management of his last act.
Voted out of the White House after one term, he didn’t dwell on his hurt. He
instead formed a poignant, constructive friendship with the man who beat
him<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/zzvhcI0nUTjdhQOYvq3qVg~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP4QGAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRoZWF0bGFudGljLmNvbS9wb2xpdGljcy9hcmNoaXZlLzIwMTgvMTIvZ2VvcmdlLWgtdy1idXNoLWFuZC1iaWxsLWNsaW50b25zLWZhbW91cy1mcmllbmRzaGlwLzU3NzE0Ny8_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9OTMmZW1jPWVkaXRfZmJfMjAyMTA1MTkmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9MzExMTkmbmw9ZnJhbmstYnJ1bmkmcmVnaV9pZD0xMTkxMzQ1OTMmc2VnbWVudF9pZD01ODQ0NCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NTE5ZGQ2ZTQ3N2I2MWRiMDFiNmMwNzZkN2M1N2U3NTZXA255dEIKYKMGNqVgzjp69FIWZXJpY3BydXNzZWxsQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>,
Bill Clinton. He wasn’t haunted by his diminished power. He figured out, and
exercised, what considerable
influence<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/aSpC_yvo4to5TjKyFP6MoA~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TUaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAxMC8wMS8xNy93b3JsZC9hbWVyaWNhcy8xN3ByZXh5Lmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9OTMmZW1jPWVkaXRfZmJfMjAyMTA1MTkmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9MzExMTkmbmw9ZnJhbmstYnJ1bmkmcmVnaV9pZD0xMTkxMzQ1OTMmc2VnbWVudF9pZD01ODQ0NCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NTE5ZGQ2ZTQ3N2I2MWRiMDFiNmMwNzZkN2M1N2U3NTZXA255dEIKYKMGNqVgzjp69FIWZXJpY3BydXNzZWxsQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>
he still had. All of this fit into his resolve to be honorable and humble. The
instruction manual covered that.
Continue reading the main
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In 1997, at the age of 72, he decided to do, for fun, something he was forced
to during World War II: jump with a parachute from a
plane<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/70B2ywN3uO_R8Cgzk6Rz4A~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TjaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMTk5Ny8wMy8yNi91cy9hdC03Mi1idXNoLWxlYXBzLWludG8tdGhlLW9wZW4tc2t5Lmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9OTMmZW1jPWVkaXRfZmJfMjAyMTA1MTkmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9MzExMTkmbmw9ZnJhbmstYnJ1bmkmcmVnaV9pZD0xMTkxMzQ1OTMmc2VnbWVudF9pZD01ODQ0NCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NTE5ZGQ2ZTQ3N2I2MWRiMDFiNmMwNzZkN2M1N2U3NTZXA255dEIKYKMGNqVgzjp69FIWZXJpY3BydXNzZWxsQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>.
It was the beginning of a geriatric tradition for him, the first of five
volitional sky dives. Becker’s book shares his written description of his
descent once he had pulled his rip cord, which sums up the liberation that he
came to feel on the far side of 70, with politics and its constrictions in the
rearview mirror:
“I was at peace. Gone was the noise from the free fall. I was alone, floating
gently towards earth, reveling in the freedom, enjoying the view.”
For the Love of Sentences
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The Kentucky Derby.Jamie Rhodes/USA Today Sports, via Reuters
In an artful
evisceration<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/0uaEJuPkdOUJte3uZKF2Cg~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TyaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cud2FzaGluZ3RvbnBvc3QuY29tL29waW5pb25zLzIwMjEvMDUvMTAvbWVldC1rZXZpbi1tY2NhcnRoeS1wb2xpdGljYWwtaG9sbG93LW1hbi8_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9OTMmZW1jPWVkaXRfZmJfMjAyMTA1MTkmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9MzExMTkmbmw9ZnJhbmstYnJ1bmkmcmVnaV9pZD0xMTkxMzQ1OTMmc2VnbWVudF9pZD01ODQ0NCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NTE5ZGQ2ZTQ3N2I2MWRiMDFiNmMwNzZkN2M1N2U3NTZXA255dEIKYKMGNqVgzjp69FIWZXJpY3BydXNzZWxsQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>
of Kevin McCarthy, Michael Gerson of The Washington Post recalled the House
minority leader’s initial denunciation of Donald Trump’s conduct on Jan. 6 and
wrote that McCarthy “stands condemned by his own 10 minutes of moral clarity.
His slinking to Mar-a-Lago to repent for disloyal honesty shows a tolerance for
humiliation akin to masochism.” He also pointed out the convenience of
McCarthy’s and other Republicans’ current horror over the price tag of
Democrats’ legislative ambitions, noting that “Trump in power spent money like
a drunken socialist.” (Thanks to Tim Blevins of Oakland, Calif., for pointing
me toward Gerson’s essay.)
In The Atlantic, Tom Rachman, a friendly acquaintance of mine back when I was
The Times’s bureau chief in Rome and he was an (excellent) Associated Press
correspondent there, wrote a smart, unsettling
assessment<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/fq1tLUSpFJsE5scz0ioB5Q~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0T8aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlYXRsYW50aWMuY29tL2lkZWFzL2FyY2hpdmUvMjAyMS8wNS9qb3VybmFsaXN0cy1tZWRpYS10cnVzdC1pbXBhcnRpYWxpdHktcmFjaG1hbi82MTg4NDQvP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTkzJmVtYz1lZGl0X2ZiXzIwMjEwNTE5Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTMxMTE5Jm5sPWZyYW5rLWJydW5pJnJlZ2lfaWQ9MTE5MTM0NTkzJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9NTg0NDQmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPTUxOWRkNmU0NzdiNjFkYjAxYjZjMDc2ZDdjNTdlNzU2VwNueXRCCmCjBjalYM46evRSFmVyaWNwcnVzc2VsbEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~>
of journalism today that included this gem of an observation: “News is no
longer a co-dependency between authorities and reporters. It’s a hate triangle
of authorities, content creators, and the amorphous internet public.” (Benjamin
Swartzwelter, Fort Collins, Colo.)
And in The New Yorker, William Finnegan reported on how much change there had
been in the people involved in horse
racing<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/AGeywApm11b2N4hpe-6sAw~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TcaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubmV3eW9ya2VyLmNvbS9tYWdhemluZS8yMDIxLzA1LzI0L2Nhbi1ob3JzZS1yYWNpbmctc3Vydml2ZT9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD05MyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9mYl8yMDIxMDUxOSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD0zMTExOSZubD1mcmFuay1icnVuaSZyZWdpX2lkPTExOTEzNDU5MyZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTU4NDQ0JnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD01MTlkZDZlNDc3YjYxZGIwMWI2YzA3NmQ3YzU3ZTc1NlcDbnl0QgpgowY2pWDOOnr0UhZlcmljcHJ1c3NlbGxAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA>:
“The stereotypical impatient owner these days is not some toffee-nosed
plutocrat but a clueless hedge funder demanding a Kentucky Derby winner, of
which he might own half a hoof.” (Tom Davis, Green Bay, Wis.)
In The Times, Sarah Vowell’s Opinion section
essay<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/AX4AJDIu8ojmA3pMvVxiDw~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TdaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMS8wNS8xMi9vcGluaW9uL2JvemVtYW4tbW9udGFuYS1ob3VzaW5nLmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9OTMmZW1jPWVkaXRfZmJfMjAyMTA1MTkmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9MzExMTkmbmw9ZnJhbmstYnJ1bmkmcmVnaV9pZD0xMTkxMzQ1OTMmc2VnbWVudF9pZD01ODQ0NCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NTE5ZGQ2ZTQ3N2I2MWRiMDFiNmMwNzZkN2M1N2U3NTZXA255dEIKYKMGNqVgzjp69FIWZXJpY3BydXNzZWxsQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>
on the tide of pandemic-era newcomers who have transformed her college town
brimmed with memorable passages. One concerned an encounter with a recent
transplant who was not yet up to sartorial speed: “It was a wintry day last
year. I was as bundled up as a Scandinavian proverb: There is no bad weather,
only bad clothes. The stranger wasn’t wearing a jacket and shivered so much it
was like chatting with a washer that just hit the spin cycle.” (Mike Frost,
Durham, N.C.)
Finally, in Ginia Bellafante’s most recent Big City
column<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/bBNjaaMf-UtBvTT8fHtSxQ~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP4QKAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm55dGltZXMuY29tLzIwMjEvMDUvMTMvbnlyZWdpb24vbnljLW1heW9yLWVsZWN0aW9uLXNjb3R0LXN0cmluZ2VyLWVyaWMtYWRhbXMuaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD05MyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9mYl8yMDIxMDUxOSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD0zMTExOSZubD1mcmFuay1icnVuaSZyZWdpX2lkPTExOTEzNDU5MyZzZWFyY2hSZXN1bHRQb3NpdGlvbj0xJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9NTg0NDQmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPTUxOWRkNmU0NzdiNjFkYjAxYjZjMDc2ZDdjNTdlNzU2VwNueXRCCmCjBjalYM46evRSFmVyaWNwcnVzc2VsbEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~>
in The Times, she compared Scott Stringer, the mayoral candidate, to “a pot
roast on a damp night in midwinter: satisfying, if not abundant in memorable
flavor.” (John Backe, Bronx, N.Y.) The column noted how the fervently disputed
accusations of sexual wrongdoing against Stringer have been more damaging than
charges of corruption against a rival contender, Eric Adams, and it had a
killer finish that nodded to the poor showings of Maya Wiley, Kathryn Garcia
and Dianne Morales in mayoral-race polls: “Regardless of whether the
accusations against Mr. Stringer and Mr. Adams prove spurious or damning, one
thing is true, at least for now. Two men accused of wrongdoing are ahead of
women who are accused of nothing.”
To nominate favorite bits of writing from The Times or other publications to be
mentioned in “For the Love of Sentences,” please email me
here<mailto:bruni-newsletter@xxxxxxxxxxx?subject=Frank%20Bruni%20Newsletter%20Feedback>,
and please include your name and place of residence.
What I’m Reading
* The coronavirus pandemic has produced a whole literature — or at least a
bevy of excellent journalism — about the psychic and emotional traps that
people get stuck in. In The Times, for example, there was Adam Grant’s viral
essay on
languishing<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/u6rlbsnn0qxeT5Qm7RNMHQ~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TnaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMS8wNC8xOS93ZWxsL21pbmQvY292aWQtbWVudGFsLWhlYWx0aC1sYW5ndWlzaGluZy5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTkzJmVtYz1lZGl0X2ZiXzIwMjEwNTE5Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTMxMTE5Jm5sPWZyYW5rLWJydW5pJnJlZ2lfaWQ9MTE5MTM0NTkzJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9NTg0NDQmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPTUxOWRkNmU0NzdiNjFkYjAxYjZjMDc2ZDdjNTdlNzU2VwNueXRCCmCjBjalYM46evRSFmVyaWNwcnVzc2VsbEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~>
a few weeks ago and, just before that, Sarah Lyall’s excellent reflection “We
Have All Hit a
Wall<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/uKPk7-eVAG8nM5oevCVzpg~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TkaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMS8wNC8wMy9idXNpbmVzcy9wYW5kZW1pYy1idXJub3V0LXByb2R1Y3Rpdml0eS5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTkzJmVtYz1lZGl0X2ZiXzIwMjEwNTE5Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTMxMTE5Jm5sPWZyYW5rLWJydW5pJnJlZ2lfaWQ9MTE5MTM0NTkzJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9NTg0NDQmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPTUxOWRkNmU0NzdiNjFkYjAxYjZjMDc2ZDdjNTdlNzU2VwNueXRCCmCjBjalYM46evRSFmVyaWNwcnVzc2VsbEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~>.”
Add to these Jill Lepore’s just-published report on the history of
“burnout”<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/1g3AZjAOQYeHpCduHBUpjg~~/AAAAAQA~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~>
in The New Yorker. I found it fascinating.
* “The largest and most well-conducted studies that we have all show that
teens who spend more time on social media are more likely to be depressed or
unhappy,” Jean Twenge, a psychology professor at San Diego State University and
the author of the 2017 book “iGen,” told Miles Parks of NPR. Parks’s
article<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/FfEjed-nPmVoY2iAhyNFMA~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP4QJAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm5wci5vcmcvMjAyMS8wNS8xOC85OTAyMzQ1MDEvZmFjZWJvb2stY2FsbHMtbGlua3MtdG8tZGVwcmVzc2lvbi1pbmNvbmNsdXNpdmUtdGhlc2UtcmVzZWFyY2hlcnMtZGlzYWdyZWU_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9OTMmZW1jPWVkaXRfZmJfMjAyMTA1MTkmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9MzExMTkmbmw9ZnJhbmstYnJ1bmkmcmVnaV9pZD0xMTkxMzQ1OTMmc2VnbWVudF9pZD01ODQ0NCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NTE5ZGQ2ZTQ3N2I2MWRiMDFiNmMwNzZkN2M1N2U3NTZXA255dEIKYKMGNqVgzjp69FIWZXJpY3BydXNzZWxsQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>
focuses on young people, but I also worry plenty about what happens to adults
who wallow in social media.
* Because the writer Tom
Rachman<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/znKg6Kmtgv7g8NSZar2Xeg~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0S-aHR0cDovL3d3dy50b21yYWNobWFuLmNvbS9hYm91dC10b20uaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD05MyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9mYl8yMDIxMDUxOSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD0zMTExOSZubD1mcmFuay1icnVuaSZyZWdpX2lkPTExOTEzNDU5MyZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTU4NDQ0JnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD01MTlkZDZlNDc3YjYxZGIwMWI2YzA3NmQ3YzU3ZTc1NlcDbnl0QgpgowY2pWDOOnr0UhZlcmljcHJ1c3NlbGxAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA>
appears in For the Love of Sentences today, I want to mention a novel of his
that I loved, even though it’s not what I’m reading but what I happily read
when it came out a little more than a decade ago. It’s called “The
Imperfectionists” and it’s described accurately in this rave
review<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/4os-4q6XlzPZ2uu5mWvKcQ~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRih7sGP0TUaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAxMC8wNS8wMi9ib29rcy9yZXZpZXcvQnVja2xleS10Lmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9OTMmZW1jPWVkaXRfZmJfMjAyMTA1MTkmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9MzExMTkmbmw9ZnJhbmstYnJ1bmkmcmVnaV9pZD0xMTkxMzQ1OTMmc2VnbWVudF9pZD01ODQ0NCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NTE5ZGQ2ZTQ3N2I2MWRiMDFiNmMwNzZkN2M1N2U3NTZXA255dEIKYKMGNqVgzjp69FIWZXJpY3BydXNzZWxsQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>
in The Times.
On a Personal Note
[https://ci4.googleusercontent.com/proxy/IDBXSOPAl6AUOO9aVkrYm5hIh3w_CYCW4c6tU6CeEPHgD6dCgKRUn0AxLXnHETi8p6V0wVDRttbkcbYLiuE8vQebAjQPlxowgNvCLxw1pvUo7PjS_lBKzMCQlublPvaNnNnNUsa2Sk6LFk3XyWiA3uzlrY1vC59EaDC-jKjlMHAnY6v9TaCcJCJJ-QqswiStciLO3UYKPxZcRwO5GkLXWQ0=s0-d-e1-ft#https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/05/12/opinion/12bruni-newsletter5/merlin_171066303_9841587a-5ed4-436a-a833-091987124881-articleLarge.jpg]
Central Park.Jeenah Moon for The New York Times
In a modest gazebo beside the main lake of Central Park last Thursday
afternoon, a terrific jazz trio played — saxophonist, bassist, drummer. From
what I could tell, this wasn’t some organized concert. It was an act of
generosity, a spontaneous expression of the relief that so many of us were
feeling as we emerged from a long period of profound hardship and loss.
The trio’s music wafted over the passing bikers, joggers, amblers and dog
walkers, but its immediate audience was a cluster of several dozen people who
had turned a patch of grass that sloped upward from the gazebo into a makeshift
theater. What I noticed first was how near to one another they were huddled.
What I noticed next was the unobstructed visibility of their faces. Almost none
of them wore masks, and I suddenly had access to a range of individual
expressions and human beauty that had been shrouded for so long.
But what I noticed most of all was their joy. It was palpable in their relaxed
postures, indelible in their smiles. Just hours earlier, the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention had announced that vaccinated Americans could
behave with significantly less caution and breathe a whole lot easier. Those
words had traveled fast and far and marked a turning point. Among the people in
the park on this day of felicitously blue skies, there was a spirit of freedom
so buoyant and a sense of celebration so pure that they filled me from the
outside in, suffusing my heart.
I resolved to remember that feeling.
I want all of us to.
As we turn the corner on this awful pandemic, we’re reconnecting with pleasures
denied us for more than a year, and we’re savoring them: the tickle of a breeze
on your bare cheek; an outdoor stroll that’s not a wide-berth slalom around
potentially contagious bodies; the tight hug of a family member or friend; the
energy of a busy restaurant; the company of fellow music or movie lovers in a
finite space enlivened by their enthusiasm. Suddenly, all of these are marvels
to us.
Six months from now, maybe even sooner, they won’t be. And it would be human
nature to start taking them for granted once again. Let’s try not to do that.
There’s a selfish reason: If we hold on to an appreciation of their
preciousness, we wring more happiness from them. But I also think it’s the way
to honor all the struggle and suffering of the past 15 months. It’s the way to
grow and learn.
The so-called simple pleasures aren’t simple at all. “Essential” is the better
word for them. They’re what sand down the jagged edges of our lives. They’re
what keep us moving when it would be easier to crumple.
They’re grace notes. I’d like to think that I’ll listen and sway to them as
never before.
