“They have a v. worldly & relaxed attitude to the motives of a fieldman, & no patience at all for the fiery-eyed zealot who grinds his teeth & says ‘I hate Communism.’ If he hates it that much, they argue, he’s most likely half-way in love w/ it already” Hon. Schoolboy, Le Carré

Lumineers and OMAM were also, of course, good

Happy birthday to Wendell Berry. Here he is in Thomas Merton’s hermitage in the mid-60s with Merton and Denise Levertov.

Shadey Trees

“His last years were his most trying…Except for a short, golden period at Oxford, his ministry was the trial of his soul he knew it would be when he took his vows…‘I am so happy,’ were his last words.” -Guy Davenport on Gerard Manley Hopkins

Enjoying Evening Cool, by Takahashi Shotei, ca. 1926-1927

A good collection hear is enough to make any man smile cheers

Wherever we are, let us try not to miss any opportunity to love. This is the vigilance that Jesus asks of us: to get used to being attentive, available, and sensitive to one another, as He is with us at every moment. #Angelus

"And so, dear brothers and sisters, the Resurrection enters our world even today. The words and choices of death may seem to prevail, but the life of God breaks through our despair through concrete experiences of fraternity and new gestures of solidarity."

Dispatches from 2000 open.substack.com/pub/peterblair…

It is Sunday. Let us act accordingly!

Felt like I had to go run 35 miles after finishing this book: peterblair.substack.com/p/the-last-sam…

Precision in poetry is underrated. I remember being blown away by these Jane Kenyon lines: "Wind moves the leaves of the box elder; / they show their light undersides, / turning all at once / like a school of fish." An image that's both original AND precise. That's the goal.

Sam & Dave - Hold On, I’m Comin’ A dynamite double act, backed by Booker T. & the M.G.’s and the Memphis Horns, bringing that Stax/Volt soul sound to Europe. It doesn’t get much better than this. 1967.

Hasui Kawase