“Until you value yourself, you won’t value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it.” -M. Scott Peck
Hey you,
How are things? You didn’t answer me last week, cheeky you. I really really hope you’re doing okay? And if you’re not, it will be okay.
This past Tuesday, my grandmother turned 80 but she’s not well, currently in the hospital. As I was chatting with her, it dawned on me how childlike her voice has become and it made me a lil emosh. This is the woman who trained and built my alcohol tolerance, I’m not ready to let her go. I know it’s not something I have control over and no matter how we brace ourselves for death, we can never be ready to lose a loved one.
All I could do, since I’m so far away was make her talk and laugh. If any of your grandparents are still alive, call them and just check on them and remind them that you love them very much. And if they are not here anymore, light a candle and drink to their memory. Don’t forget to think happy thoughts.
I recently read My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She’s Sorry by Fredrik Backman and it was a 5-star experience. Reading it reminded me why stories matter, that children often see what’s important and that a little suspension of belief can be good for the soul. Here are some of my favourite sentences from the novel:
“Granny then said the real trick of life was that almost no one is entirely a shit and almost no one is entirely not a shit. The hard part of life is keeping as much on the not-a-shit side as one can.”
“Never mess with someone who has more spare time than you do.”
“The mightiest power of death is not that it can make people die, but that it can make the people you left behind want to stop living.”
“It’s much more difficult to have conflict when there are cookies around.”
I don’t enjoy a lot of books from male authors but Fredrik Backman has warmed his way into my heart, I really hope he’s not racist or a bad person, that would really hurt because I don’t know how to separate the artist from the art. Is there any person whose work you’ve had to cut away from your life because they just didn’t align with your values anymore?
SPOTLIGHT: Meet Soma Nami Books aka @somanami_ke. It’s currently an online bookstore based in Kenya. The curation of the books sold let you that book lovers are behind the scenes. Selling books in Africa is no easy feat, so I commend the efforts of this store.
They also manage a book club and there are monthly subscription boxes. I know they are hoping to have a physical store in the future and my fingers are crossed for them. Follow them on IG and give them a boost whenever you can, okay?
ICYMI: The Something Bookish Podcast is back. Season 4, episode 1, baby!
This week’s episode is like a grammar class but for bookish people. I explain slangs, terms, and jargons that book lovers use every day. Words like readathons, tropes, mass market paperback vs trade paperback, bookgasm, etc. You can listen HERE.
FUN FACT: Did you know that your nostrils work one at a time? When we breathe in and out of our nose during the day, one nostril does most of the work at a time, with the duties switching every several hours. This "nasal cycle" is dictated by “the same autonomic nervous system that regulates heart rate, digestion, and other unconscious bodily functions” and is the reason why—when our nose gets stuffed up—it does so one nostril at a time. It’s a weird piece of information but you’re welcome.
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Chapter Five
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“Until you value yourself, you won’t value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it.” -M. Scott Peck
Hey you,
How are things? You didn’t answer me last week, cheeky you. I really really hope you’re doing okay? And if you’re not, it will be okay.
This past Tuesday, my grandmother turned 80 but she’s not well, currently in the hospital. As I was chatting with her, it dawned on me how childlike her voice has become and it made me a lil emosh. This is the woman who trained and built my alcohol tolerance, I’m not ready to let her go. I know it’s not something I have control over and no matter how we brace ourselves for death, we can never be ready to lose a loved one.
All I could do, since I’m so far away was make her talk and laugh. If any of your grandparents are still alive, call them and just check on them and remind them that you love them very much. And if they are not here anymore, light a candle and drink to their memory. Don’t forget to think happy thoughts.
I recently read My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She’s Sorry by Fredrik Backman and it was a 5-star experience. Reading it reminded me why stories matter, that children often see what’s important and that a little suspension of belief can be good for the soul. Here are some of my favourite sentences from the novel:
“Granny then said the real trick of life was that almost no one is entirely a shit and almost no one is entirely not a shit. The hard part of life is keeping as much on the not-a-shit side as one can.”
“Never mess with someone who has more spare time than you do.”
“The mightiest power of death is not that it can make people die, but that it can make the people you left behind want to stop living.”
“It’s much more difficult to have conflict when there are cookies around.”
I don’t enjoy a lot of books from male authors but Fredrik Backman has warmed his way into my heart, I really hope he’s not racist or a bad person, that would really hurt because I don’t know how to separate the artist from the art. Is there any person whose work you’ve had to cut away from your life because they just didn’t align with your values anymore?
SPOTLIGHT: Meet Soma Nami Books aka @somanami_ke. It’s currently an online bookstore based in Kenya. The curation of the books sold let you that book lovers are behind the scenes. Selling books in Africa is no easy feat, so I commend the efforts of this store.
They also manage a book club and there are monthly subscription boxes. I know they are hoping to have a physical store in the future and my fingers are crossed for them. Follow them on IG and give them a boost whenever you can, okay?
ICYMI: The Something Bookish Podcast is back. Season 4, episode 1, baby!
This week’s episode is like a grammar class but for bookish people. I explain slangs, terms, and jargons that book lovers use every day. Words like readathons, tropes, mass market paperback vs trade paperback, bookgasm, etc. You can listen HERE.
FUN FACT: Did you know that your nostrils work one at a time? When we breathe in and out of our nose during the day, one nostril does most of the work at a time, with the duties switching every several hours. This "nasal cycle" is dictated by “the same autonomic nervous system that regulates heart rate, digestion, and other unconscious bodily functions” and is the reason why—when our nose gets stuffed up—it does so one nostril at a time. It’s a weird piece of information but you’re welcome.
Okay, byeeeeeeeeeee! x