Dig into the Past for Presents

My last trip to the Niantic Book Barn yielded a sweet and unexpected gift. My mom shopped on her own while Gavin played fort on the playground and I leafed through my new finds. My reading cup was already overflowing when Mom pulled a surprise out of her bag: A Laura Ingalls Wilder book I had never seen before! It was befitting that Mom was the giver, as she had given me, one by one, the whole “Little House” series during my childhood.

In 1991, Stephen W. Hines edited a rediscovered collection of Wilder’s writings gleaned from farm papers and national magazine clippings: Little House in the Ozarks. These pieces, even though they were written earlier in her life, describe the life that came after the events depicted in Little House on the Prairie.

It has been a hard month—I think the nation is collectively feeling the grim state of the economy, the uncertainty of the upcoming election. So it gave me enormous comfort to read of another place and time. Soon into it, however, the words reminded me more and more of the present.

1917: Wilder writes about wildflowers and the pure memories of her girlhood. Her conclusion: “I believe we would be happier to have a personal revolution in our individual lives and go back to simpler living and more direct thinking. It is the simple things of life that make living worthwhile, the sweet fundamental things such as love and duty, work and rest, and living close to nature.”

1920: Wilder writes: “People used to have time to live and enjoy themselves, but there is no time anymore for anything but work, work, work.” By the end of the piece, she has reframed her perspective, recalling how much harder things were for her parents, and how far reaching a positive attitude can be, lightening the load of so much that has to be done.

Laura Ingalls Wilder, were she still alive, would be welcome as a guest writer on my blog any time, although I know she might very well steal the show. Her words showed me that human nature has an evergreen quality, that we are joined to other centuries by the similar longings and plans of those who came before us. The editor must have had the same experience, for he titled the section that housed these articles Nothing New Under the Sun.

Those that think deeply may complain, but ultimately they want to go even deeper. They were seekers in the last century; they will be seekers in the next. And their journey is ever one of persistence and hope. My slow, bumpy progress toward a simpler, more meaning-infused existence is not by any stretch the first such journey. It’s nice to know I have many centuries worth of company sharing the road.

Today’s Deals

Pragmatics

• -Here’s a blogger's insight into the seductive anxiety that online, time-limited deals create.


• -Yesterday’s find, tumbling out from a cover of more predictable flowers, inspired me to learn how to grow strawberries. Here’s eHow's primer on strawberry gardens.


• -I’ve mentioned the Niantic Book Barn in my blog before, but here’s a photo tour that does it better justice.

Prose

This morning I find a reminder e-mail from a bookstore Web site, and dutifully click on the link. I am greeted with, Hello, Katherine. We have recommendations for you. The computer spits my demographics at me. Forty-something working woman who drinks decaf coffee and sometimes likes to meditate. Oh, and she seems like she can lose a few pounds, if you note the South Beach diet products listed. Any product I have ever lingered over but not purchased greets me from the Recommendations list. One, a book On Being a Minor Writer, stings a bit. Is this what my computer really thinks of me?

The site’s got me all figured out. Well, almost. Although I am intrigued by the thought of marketing and computer geeks creating algorithms that help select what I “need”, I take great pleasure in running through “Today’s Deals” with a skeptical eye. I never knew I needed (greatly reduced) freshwater pearls, reconditioned framing nailers, or a jump starter with built-in radio. Lower down, some of those items I previously viewed but ultimately abandoned appear again, haunting me with their availability. Robert Frost and Yeats are 35% off! Hmmm…My cynicism softens. but just for a minute. It’s like a boyfriend who knows how to sweet talk me, but deep down I know he’s still the same old superficial dude. I’ll be visiting Niantic Book Barn again soon—no Yeats emergency that requires overnight shipping here.

I think about Today’s Deals, the ones that have nothing to do with calculated commerce. I get to blog this morning, a treat for a weekday. I took an early morning walk without looking at my watch--a day off pleasure I should enjoy more often. We are going to Vermont. Soon most of our family will be reunited, seeing Will, our youngest nephew, graduate. Yesterday’s Top Deals included finding an exotic darning-needle type bug on the porch, one that let Gavin and me hold it for quite a while before zooming off. In the evening, I showed Gavin two “secret” staircases that are often overlooked in Chester. Both are shaded by overhanging trees. The best deal was the almost-ripe strawberry that we pilfered from someone’s front garden in Chester. Gavin carried it home like a prize, showing it off to Tom and placing it in a clear Tupperware box for display. We discussed the merits of leaving the strawberry with its owners’ garden, but in the end it was irresistible.

These are the real deals. To borrow from the advertising line: Possible purchases from thebookmonolith.com: $87 and counting. Day to day moments with family and in nature: priceless.