Tag: Pulitzer Prize

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Sunday Supplement #10 (July 18th, 2021)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

I hope you take something away from this post that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.”

– Dr. Seuss

Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, is one of my favorite children’s authors. There are so many brilliant phrases, tongue twisters, and clever rhyming schemes from his books. Thankfully, after 27 rejections of his first book, Geisel experienced a lucky encounter with an old friend that launched his writing career.

The above quote is one of his many great lines and reminds me to be grateful and present whenever possible. There are plenty of moments when I wish I was more aware, but I’m glad I can look back on them, learn from them, and appreciate them.

Book of the Week:

Attached – Amir Levine and Rachel S.F. Heller

British psychologist and psychoanalyst John Bowlby pioneered attachment theory. He scrutinized the impact of our early relationships with parents and caregivers on our development into adulthood. While there had been much research on attachment theory since its initial founding, its effect on romantic relationships wasn’t an area as deeply explored until recently.

Psychiatrist and neuroscientist Amir Levin and psychologist Rachel S.F. Heller teamed up and wrote a book that breaks down attachment theory in romantic relationships. Attached explores how evolutionary influences, combined with attachment theory, shape our behavior and who we are in our relationships today.

A highlight from the book is Levine and Heller’s breakdown of behaviors into three categories: anxious, avoidant, and secure. We have a mix of all three but tend to lean in one direction or another and can change over time. The book provides brief prompts that allow the reader to reflect on different relationships and see how different behaviors fall into the three categories. It is a powerful tool to help recognize an underlining meaning behind different actions, and it is worth learning to understand yourself and others better.

Attached offers excellent advice and helps explains how each style is okay and can be worked on if desired. The book is one of my favorites, so far, in the relationship/self-help genre.

Movie of the Week:

It’s a Wonderful Life

A local businessman who is about to give up on his life is visited by his guardian angel, who shows the man what life would have been like in his small town if he never existed.

It’s a Wonderful Life had an underwhelming return at the box office, barely breaking even. However, the film was nominated for five Academy Awards and has gone on to become a Christmas classic. Jimmy Stewart stars in the movie and gives a performance that rivals his Hitchcock films. Frank Capra was initially criticized for the movie’s lack of financial return, but time proved the director still knew what he was doing in the latter stages of his career.

We might not be anywhere near Christmas now, but I thought the movie’s themes were worth exploring in this post. In an interview posted by AFI, Capra talks about how the theme of the importance of the individual, featured in all his work, was best explored in It’s a Wonderful Life. The story shows how we can easily miss our impact on others around us. And by the end of the movie, the importance of an individual’s self-belief is predominant.

Keep this film in mind for the holidays at the end of the year, or check it out if you’re looking for an uplifting watch. It is a beautiful reminder of your importance to others in your life and to be grateful for those people.

Brainfood of the Week:

David Foster Wallace’s “This is Water” Commencement Speech – Kenyon College ’05.

David Foster Wallace was a celebrated author and university professor. He is most known for his widely acclaimed novel Infinite Jest. Time magazine listed it as one of the best 100 English-language novels from 1923 to 2005. His last novel, The Pale King (published posthumously), was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2012.

In Wallace’s Commencement Speech, he outlines the importance of learning to exercise more control over how and what you think. He reflects on the most important realities being often the hardest to see and talk about. The ultimate goal is choosing what you pay attention to and choosing how you construct meaning from your experiences. 

I first came across Wallace through his interview on Charlie Rose. His thoughts on postmodernism in media and how self-ridicule can be a deterrent for action gave me a different perspective on modern television and film. I tried reading Infinite Jest, but it is one of the very few novels I’ve put down. I might give it another go at some point in the future, or I might check out one of his other works.

The speech is something that’s come back around at various points in my life. The goal to be aware of what is right in front of me and around me is something that I try to keep at the forefront of my day-to-day experiences. As Wallace describes in the speech, it’s one of the hardest things in adult life. However, it is a worthy pursuit.

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“By time, surely man is in loss, save those who believe and do good deeds, and enjoin on each other truth, and enjoin on each other patience.”

Surat Al-`Asr 103: 1-3

This passage from the Quran helps me realize the importance of where we aim our focus. The beginning words about time remind me of instances where I’ve experienced frustration because something wasn’t happening when I wanted it to occur. That feeling of anger has been from something as simple as finding a parking space or something much bigger, like achieving a goal.

That frustration of sadness can also be linked to unhappy memories or potentially stressful future situations. Regardless of the circumstances, a fixation on time and lack created an unpleasant experience.

I like how the Quran passage goes on to discuss belief/doing of good deeds, truth, and patience are what takes us out of loss. I’m reminded of the times a calm mind and heart helped me in various situations, big and small. I will continue to aim to be present, conscious, and aware as much as possible going forward.

Take a few moments to be present and grateful, and have a blessed week ahead!