a view of marriage

Elizabeth Gilbert's new book on marriage, COMMITTED will probably not be read by many women over 50 and mostly enjoyed by women under 30. Gilbert challenges too many traditions for older women and the young generation simple takes many of the changes in marriage for granted. Against all the odds of success, she explains in this book, why she is taking the chance and getting married again.

Never could I think of a more difficult subject to write about than that dance, I call marriage, having taken vows of marriage three times I have firm ideas about what can make and break relationships. I think she succeeded with this book but even Gilbert said she totally started over on this project after finishing the first go around.

Gilbert is at her best when she writes like an interviewing journalist. She is very good at observing, very curious and has lots of insights to add. It also should be added that she is not afraid to treat the subject like a research paper and educated herself on the whole field of marriage historically. She became a little boring when examining her own motives and personality, although she is painfully honest and blunt. By nature, memoirs and autobiography matter is narcissistic, I suppose.

Understanding her personality is much easy for me now that she has written so opening about the women in her family. There is a gathering in that bloodline of strong women, independent thinkers and determine hard workers. Personally, I identified easily with her mother, probably a person close to my age.

Humor and openness must a characteristic of her family and husband because she is very revealing, 'eye only' standard was thrown out with printing of this book.

I found my interest level uneven while reading it. In the end, I like her as a writer and am amazed at some of her work but as the NYT reviewer said, I look forward to the book about her grandmother.

Books, egg and heat

I have just finished a book about ethnic American gardens by Patricia Klindienst. I was moved to tears a couple times because of the tales of immigrants and their determination to survive. THE EARTH KNOWS MY NAME is not likely to get a large audience but between the fine writer, she teaches creative writing at Yale and the research she has done for this book, it is a loss for all Americans don't read it, but especially for those that value working in the soil and enjoy the beauty of plants.

The book travels from one coast to the other, from culture to culture using the stories of ancestors, seeds and techniques to frame the common plot of all people. Besides the historical tales of the book, the author's own sensitivity and abilities are what makes this book so unique.

Another book that has caught my attention is SECOND SPRING. It is one of those pick up anytime, to read a few pages, type of book. Dr. Maoshing Ni gives hundreds of natural secrets for women to age healthy and vibrantly. I think I will buy my own copy and use it as a reference book.

A miracle happened yesterday, our first, blue, small egg. It was Autumn, the Americana laying hen that has started our official egg production.

The chickens has been surprising in a few ways. First, I never would have guessed that I would let them roam the yard as much as I do. We had a week of extreme hot weather and they needed to have the cool watered earth to dig into and also often make nesting places for resting. They move around the backyard in a system that shows they are staying out of the heat and bright sun. I also find them nosier that I would have thought. Now I have two families of crows that live in the woods over the fence so I am use to loud birds but these ladies of mine can also be very demanding of attention. The third item is funny but they love to pick at my red toe nails. Now I am on guard about that habit of theirs.

John has a new job because of them, he is on patrol with the shove a couple times a day checking out droppings on our patio. I will not write the monologue that is going on during these times. There are moments that the five of them stand at the back door, looking into the house, waiting to be invited in. That is all we can assume. We find them amusing but really for them to be waiting for that invitation is a bit much! Daisy in the meantime acts as if they are invisible.

Now daily trips to the coop have the added interest of looking for eggs. I will keep you posted on that count.