Here are some bits of beauty I’ve been collecting lately:
For the last six weeks I worked through Christine Valters Paintner’s excellent Lent guide A Different Kind of Fast. Inspired by a practice in the book, I decided to create my own “altar” for my quiet space in the mornings. Just sitting here early each day and lighting the candle for a few minutes has been very meaningful to me.
I started playing Hogwarts Legacy a few weeks ago, and can I tell you, I am getting a ridiculous amount of delight from running around the castle attending classes and flying around the Scottish highlands on my broom.
Jen and I saw Dune Part Two several weeks ago and it was magnificent. This feels like the epic sci-fi filmmaking we’ve been craving for awhile. Between Blade Runner 2049, Arrival, and now Dune, Denis Villeneuve is emerging as the premier sci-fi filmmaker of our generation. I shared some thoughts about Dune 2 here on Substack recently.
I’ve been listening to Kacey Musgraves’ new album Deeper Well a ton recently. I love the 70s folk vibes. Also, it feels like a very second half of life album.
In other music news, I am very excited about the release of Jon Foreman’s new solo project, In Bloom, coming at the end of May. The title track (featuring Joy Oladokun) is full of chill vibes and meaningful lyrics.
I’ve been reading my friend
’s fantastic forthcoming book The Understory and it’s the best non-fiction book I’ve read in awhile. Part memoir, part walk through the woods, part spiritual meditation on rootedness and resilience. Go and preorder it!
Loved Hogwarts Legacy! Could finally see what it’s like to be a real Hufflepuff (of which I’m very proud!)
Thank you for those words about The Understory, Chris. Your words mean the world to me.