Hello friends,
Every year in the month of May, one of those cheap carnivals-on-wheels springs up in the same parking lot in East Charlotte. We drive by it on the way to my boys’ workplace sometimes. It is rusty, raggedy, and unsafe. Anything that travels on the highway in the morning, and yet by evening is ready to whip children in circles at high rates of speed, should not be entirely trusted.
And yet, I find it all very charming in an Americana, springtime, unpolished way. It is not fancy but it gets the job done. It provides a flashing light of happiness in the middle of dour miles of cell phone stores and tire places. Shine on, broken-down carnival, shine on.
The Part Where There’s an Essay: A Grand Laughter
I’ve been so blessed to take part in the fellowship of writers at Cultivating Oaks Press this year. To have a community of writers for help, discussion, prayer, and accountability has been a great encouragement to me. Last month our Spring edition dropped, on the theme of grace. My piece goes from The Office to the book of Jeremiah to Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead, which is par for the course for how I think in an average day.
Last week I received a square card in the mail. The front of it had a painting of Highclere Castle, “Home of the real ‘Downton Abbey.’” The note was from a friend of mine, one of those few who still send real mail. She had sent me a thank you note for a gift.
I’ve also been known to send thank you notes through the mail, though not for every gift. I try to be faithful to do, though—I really do. People in 2024 frequently express surprise to receive such an outdated gesture.
This friend and I used to chuckle together about that episode of The Office when Dwight Schrute decides to indebt everyone to himself by doing kind things for them. He buys the office bagels. He cleans the fridge in the break room. He holds doors for people. This is all in the hopes of gaining control of his coworkers and causing them to feel as though they “owe him one.”
What he doesn’t expect is the obstacle of his overly-polite coworker Andy Bernard, who takes pride in his own manners. Andy begins returning every favor and then presses further to exceed Dwight’s efforts with kindnesses of his own. Andy proudly says to the documentary camera: “You give me a gift—Bam! Thank you note. You invite me somewhere—Pow! RSVP. You do me a favor—Wham! Favor returned. Do not test my politeness.” Andy Bernard hates being in someone’s debt.
Andy is all of us.
Read the whole thing—and enjoy the rest of the beautiful writing by my colleagues!—right here.
For the Anglophiles
Well, it’s happened. The United Kingdom is trying to steal our holiday back. This year, on July 4, the UK will head to the polls for a general election.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak delivered this news in the most British of circumstances: A rainstorm. And here is the meme for you Monty Python fans:
Reads & Listens of the Week
Did everyone see how Apple wants to kill human creativity? The conversation around this stupid ad and the aftermath absolutely delighted me. One of my friends referred to it as a “ridiculous self-own,” and I couldn’t agree more. Watch it backward to feel better!
An interesting story here about Why Male Friendships Are Growing in America’s Most Average Town. I love learning about little local movements like this one.
One of the reasons I love Premier League Soccer is because of Rebecca Lowe, NBC’s weekend host. She is smart, funny, and a great interviewer. As it turns out, she’s also a great interviewee: listen to her here on Dadville! If she says that Americans are “just so lovely,” I’m inclined to believe her.
I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day. -E.B. White
Showing my tech ignorance, but how does one watch the Apple ad backward? I really need to change that image!