I do solidly believe that the ability to curate and ‘set a feast’ is a rare skill, of which you have. There is one other friend of mine, no longer online, who has a similar gift. It has long struck me that someone like you, who listens and reads very deeply and attentively to the world around you almost becomes as a still quiet pool, where others may come and be refreshed, encouraged, and sharpened. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve been wrestling with something swirling in the ether of cross-currents, struggling to name what is bothering me about the thought-line of media about it, and bam. There the newsletter comes, and ‘aha!’, there it is, in conversation, and I can finally name it.
Haley, I get so excited when I see your newsletter in my inbox. I bookmark it, all ready to dive in during nap time! Really gives me something to look forward to in the morning 🙂 so thank you as always. Very much looking forward to these Flannery articles. I've never been able to stomach her fiction though I, of course, appreciate it artistically. But her prayer journals and letters have been extremely powerful reads. I also loved the terrible speed of Mercy.
Need to get to her prayer journal someday. I think I'm with you that I enjoy everything else in her canon more than her actual fiction. haha - But artistically and spiritually, I can appreciate it. She's simply a compelling person I rather "hang out" with than someone whose fiction I want to power through.
“May I learn to care for their words in the way that I hope they might care for mine.”
A lovely prayer for all of us, but something you do especially well. You do have such a gift in this caring for others’ words. It is something in which I could definitely grow. Thank you for that.
Thanks for the newsletter this week. When I do get into Flannery, at least I have an idea of how to start.
Praying for you all to be well and whole and blessed in every way, and soon.
And thanks, Leah. I've always been enamored with people's words. Maybe the hard part for me is actually having the confidence and diligence to exercise and share my own.
The more you take in what is good, the more you know how loved you are, the more you cultivate love for others — your words will be a profound blessing to others. So, I’m confident yours already are. Not everyone has what you’ve been given, some people are in great need of it. Be encouraged, Haley!
Aw, Haley this was such a great compilation of articles. I routinely pick up Habit of Being when things are bad just to hear her familiar voice. Flannery is just so good.
I will also say that it is so hard being pregnant, with a bunch of kids, and sickness, and not endless supplies of money to even imagine doing all these things people on the internet do. I definitely did nothing and hardly left my house for the first five years of motherhood, and was a postpartum disaster for at least a year after every kid. I still get discouraged on substack and instagram because it seems like all these people who I don't even think are that smart or talented do all these great things and everyone thinks they're amazing! I don't have answers to why or how, but it does usually involve who they know and that they very likely don't pay for much. Is this cynical, yes? But I believe at least a good part of what's going on. And I mean, it's fine, I guess? I don't know. I'm just lying in bed for the millionth day in a row, what do I know?!
Reading her letters in a slog of despond seems like a good practice. She's just so funny but also straight to the point sometimes, in a way that hits you in the right spot.
hahaha Christy, always appreciate your perspective on things. I remember you saying somewhere (maybe the post about anticipating one of your recent trips?) that it was not always something you were able to do, and that yeah you hardly left your house for like five years in the trenches of it all. Let me tell you I felt seen.
"For as long as I can remember (literally since childhood) I’ve been acutely aware of people doing things I’d like to do, but better, sooner, more easily - saying things I’ve had in my head, but more loudly, thoroughly, eloquently. My whole self was made in a particular way, and this newsletter is an outflow of it."
This is so, so relatable. Sometimes I feel handicapped by the fact that I didn't go on to get that masters degree and instead got married and had babies and now have chosen to homeschool and live life on a shoestring budget that doesn't allow for outsourcing any childcare. It all takes so much time and mental energy from the projects I want to work on that other people are doing but more visibly and with more credentials and seemingly more effortlessly. I have to trust, like you say, that my whole self was made in a particular way and that what I have to offer here is needed in some way.
However, regarding your newsletter--it is a gift! I have discovered so much writing and made so many connections that I wouldn't have otherwise without you bringing them to light. And one of my favorite things about your newsletter is how your generosity, depth, and thoughtfulness comes through. You were one of the first people to share my work and make me feel welcome here on substack and I'm so grateful for your presence here.
Allllso, if you ever find yourself in Georgia, I live just a hop, skip, and jump away from Flannery's home at Andalusia ;)
ALSO, I think it was you that recommended the children's books "Petunia" and "Adele & Simon" (among others) which I bought a while back? Our boys have been obsessed with them.
Especially Adele & Simon - the two year-old requests it often and is thrilled to no end by pointing out the missing, hidden things. And I love it too.... such fun, beautiful illustrations.
Dominika, put this comment straight into my veins. I get it 1000%. I actually didn't get married super young, so I don't have that excuse(? lol)- which is one thing I kick myself about all the time. I was just fartin' around chasing boys, moving around, and trying new jobs for a good chunk of my 20's without any solid vision for what could have been a time of graduate school and setting myself up for success (in more ways than one) later on. But, I didn't know myself very well at the time and have since been developing a more mature and developed idea of what I actually am suited for and care about. I didn't have that as some people did fresh out of undergrad. :) So I remind myself that my path just looks different. And that this current life is still good.
And I'm so, so glad Goodreads connected us back whenever that was. Glad you're here.
If it makes you feel any better I think it's precisely having kids that helped me zero in on what I wanted to do and made me feel urgency about it. As much as I'd like to think otherwise, I have serious doubts that I'd be more accomplished if I'd had more years before family life lol. I like your phrasing of this: 'developing a more mature and developed idea of what I actually am suited for and care about'. It's a real ongoing endeavor! And yes!! Connecting with you has been one of those rare gifts of the internet :)
Thank you for the page 😂 I will definitely be reading that article! Always enjoy these for my Monday morning reads (although here I am on Wednesday finally doing my comment/tag replies after taking a few days off😂).
Haley, it has been a joy to come across your newsletter. I remember reading the first couple and thinking to myself, “Me and Haley would be fast friends I think” haha. That combination of deep, careful, and slow thinking is a refreshing experience here on the internet.
I do solidly believe that the ability to curate and ‘set a feast’ is a rare skill, of which you have. There is one other friend of mine, no longer online, who has a similar gift. It has long struck me that someone like you, who listens and reads very deeply and attentively to the world around you almost becomes as a still quiet pool, where others may come and be refreshed, encouraged, and sharpened. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve been wrestling with something swirling in the ether of cross-currents, struggling to name what is bothering me about the thought-line of media about it, and bam. There the newsletter comes, and ‘aha!’, there it is, in conversation, and I can finally name it.
May have to frame this comment. haha You need to realize how perfectly you encapsulated and affirmed what I'm trying to do.
*why yes, I was the quiet girl who read a lot growing up and was dubbed "most peaceful" (or something to it) in two separate workplaces.
Haley, I get so excited when I see your newsletter in my inbox. I bookmark it, all ready to dive in during nap time! Really gives me something to look forward to in the morning 🙂 so thank you as always. Very much looking forward to these Flannery articles. I've never been able to stomach her fiction though I, of course, appreciate it artistically. But her prayer journals and letters have been extremely powerful reads. I also loved the terrible speed of Mercy.
Need to get to her prayer journal someday. I think I'm with you that I enjoy everything else in her canon more than her actual fiction. haha - But artistically and spiritually, I can appreciate it. She's simply a compelling person I rather "hang out" with than someone whose fiction I want to power through.
“May I learn to care for their words in the way that I hope they might care for mine.”
A lovely prayer for all of us, but something you do especially well. You do have such a gift in this caring for others’ words. It is something in which I could definitely grow. Thank you for that.
Thanks for the newsletter this week. When I do get into Flannery, at least I have an idea of how to start.
Praying for you all to be well and whole and blessed in every way, and soon.
And wow, thanks for sharing "Anywhere"
"And what a tragedy to awake and see
That I've never learned to stay
So bring me to a place where I don't chase escape"
Beautiful and so poignant for many of us.
Was in the perfect mood this week to listen to both that song and Jess Ray more than I'd like to admit. :)
Isn't it a wonderful prayer?
And thanks, Leah. I've always been enamored with people's words. Maybe the hard part for me is actually having the confidence and diligence to exercise and share my own.
The more you take in what is good, the more you know how loved you are, the more you cultivate love for others — your words will be a profound blessing to others. So, I’m confident yours already are. Not everyone has what you’ve been given, some people are in great need of it. Be encouraged, Haley!
Aw, Haley this was such a great compilation of articles. I routinely pick up Habit of Being when things are bad just to hear her familiar voice. Flannery is just so good.
I will also say that it is so hard being pregnant, with a bunch of kids, and sickness, and not endless supplies of money to even imagine doing all these things people on the internet do. I definitely did nothing and hardly left my house for the first five years of motherhood, and was a postpartum disaster for at least a year after every kid. I still get discouraged on substack and instagram because it seems like all these people who I don't even think are that smart or talented do all these great things and everyone thinks they're amazing! I don't have answers to why or how, but it does usually involve who they know and that they very likely don't pay for much. Is this cynical, yes? But I believe at least a good part of what's going on. And I mean, it's fine, I guess? I don't know. I'm just lying in bed for the millionth day in a row, what do I know?!
Reading her letters in a slog of despond seems like a good practice. She's just so funny but also straight to the point sometimes, in a way that hits you in the right spot.
hahaha Christy, always appreciate your perspective on things. I remember you saying somewhere (maybe the post about anticipating one of your recent trips?) that it was not always something you were able to do, and that yeah you hardly left your house for like five years in the trenches of it all. Let me tell you I felt seen.
"For as long as I can remember (literally since childhood) I’ve been acutely aware of people doing things I’d like to do, but better, sooner, more easily - saying things I’ve had in my head, but more loudly, thoroughly, eloquently. My whole self was made in a particular way, and this newsletter is an outflow of it."
This is so, so relatable. Sometimes I feel handicapped by the fact that I didn't go on to get that masters degree and instead got married and had babies and now have chosen to homeschool and live life on a shoestring budget that doesn't allow for outsourcing any childcare. It all takes so much time and mental energy from the projects I want to work on that other people are doing but more visibly and with more credentials and seemingly more effortlessly. I have to trust, like you say, that my whole self was made in a particular way and that what I have to offer here is needed in some way.
However, regarding your newsletter--it is a gift! I have discovered so much writing and made so many connections that I wouldn't have otherwise without you bringing them to light. And one of my favorite things about your newsletter is how your generosity, depth, and thoughtfulness comes through. You were one of the first people to share my work and make me feel welcome here on substack and I'm so grateful for your presence here.
Allllso, if you ever find yourself in Georgia, I live just a hop, skip, and jump away from Flannery's home at Andalusia ;)
ALSO, I think it was you that recommended the children's books "Petunia" and "Adele & Simon" (among others) which I bought a while back? Our boys have been obsessed with them.
Especially Adele & Simon - the two year-old requests it often and is thrilled to no end by pointing out the missing, hidden things. And I love it too.... such fun, beautiful illustrations.
Aww I love that! They're such fun books! Petunia has a hilarious and charming Christmastime sequel too!
Dominika, put this comment straight into my veins. I get it 1000%. I actually didn't get married super young, so I don't have that excuse(? lol)- which is one thing I kick myself about all the time. I was just fartin' around chasing boys, moving around, and trying new jobs for a good chunk of my 20's without any solid vision for what could have been a time of graduate school and setting myself up for success (in more ways than one) later on. But, I didn't know myself very well at the time and have since been developing a more mature and developed idea of what I actually am suited for and care about. I didn't have that as some people did fresh out of undergrad. :) So I remind myself that my path just looks different. And that this current life is still good.
And I'm so, so glad Goodreads connected us back whenever that was. Glad you're here.
If it makes you feel any better I think it's precisely having kids that helped me zero in on what I wanted to do and made me feel urgency about it. As much as I'd like to think otherwise, I have serious doubts that I'd be more accomplished if I'd had more years before family life lol. I like your phrasing of this: 'developing a more mature and developed idea of what I actually am suited for and care about'. It's a real ongoing endeavor! And yes!! Connecting with you has been one of those rare gifts of the internet :)
Here, here!
I loved visiting Andalusia!
I'm so glad it's been preserved! My kids went wild over the peacocks when we visited :)
Thank you for the page 😂 I will definitely be reading that article! Always enjoy these for my Monday morning reads (although here I am on Wednesday finally doing my comment/tag replies after taking a few days off😂).
Haley, it has been a joy to come across your newsletter. I remember reading the first couple and thinking to myself, “Me and Haley would be fast friends I think” haha. That combination of deep, careful, and slow thinking is a refreshing experience here on the internet.
Your voice and work is appreciated!
Thanks so much, Steve. Being the peacmaker-type that I am, I tend to get along with most people fairly well. lol
Haha likewise on the peacemaking tendency!