Hi friends, the last week has been filled with a torrent of rainfall. Monsoon is well and truly here, and brings along with it mornings filled with the sound of thunder and nights illuminated by flashes of lightning. I have to turn the lights on in the afternoon because of how dark and cloudy it is outside. This is the kind of weather that makes you want to stay in bed and not wake up for the daily morning meeting, let alone spend the day working. Lucky for me, the past week has been light on the work side so I didn't have to spend too much time on it.
Monsoon this year has been pretty similar to the monsoon last year, where I’ve had to spend the whole season at home. The silver lining of this, now excruciating, lock-down is that I get to skip the parts I hate most about Mumbai monsoons, walking in icky puddles, cars zooming by splashing water onto you, trying to get home without wetting the electronics and books in your bag, and with the amount of rain falling, if I wasn't at home I surely would’ve been stuck in a waterlogged area somewhere, trying desperately to either get on the local train, or try to book an Uber during surge pricing and traveling through roads filled with water submerging the wheels of the car. Luckily I get to experience my favourite parts of the season, which is the cold weather, the breeze through the window, drinking some coffee during it, and the general mood of lightness. It brings back all the feelings of this comic I wrote last year.
Unfortunately I do not get to share this feeling with friends like I did during my time in college. But oh well, you win some you lose some.
I broke my cardinal rule of publishing every week last week, but trying not to beat myself up too much about it. I did get some reading done in the past two weeks and noticed how much I love the acknowledgements section in a book.
The structure of it usually begins in reverse order of importance, starting with longer descriptions thanking multiple people for the more technical aspects of publishing the book, and progressively gets shorter as it reaches the end, getting more sentimental as the author thanks the closest people in their lives. You can always feel the love pouring out of those little sentences, especially when they add a personal detail to it. Like a window into the life of a person who took you on such an emotional journey. And after undergoing this roller-coaster of a journey, this acknowledgement section seems like a fitting farewell, almost like closure, before you put down this book and pick up a new one. It reminds me of the quote from Life of Pi:
I suppose in the end, the whole of life becomes an act of letting go, but what always hurts the most is not taking a moment to say goodbye.
I'm grateful for this act of taking a moment to say goodbye. And what better way to immortalize a person you love.
I went through most of the books I've read recently to pick out some of my favourite acknowledgement sections
Crying in H Mart - Michelle Zauner
The latest book I read that made me think about the acknowledgements section. In her beautiful memoir, Michelle Zauner talks about the role her husband played in the most trying moments of her life, and she writes a lovely acknowledgement to him at the end of the book.Bird by Bird - Anne Lamott
Anne Lamott's part-writing guide, part-memoir had some gems throughout, and she capped it off wonderfully with this acknowledgements section. Add to that the fact that everything she writes I read in her soothing voice, and this makes it even better.The View from the Cheap Seats - Neil Gaiman
Okay, this is technically a dedication section and not an acknowledgement, but I loved this too much to not include it. Such a lovely way to memorialize your present day self for your kid.What I Talk About When I Talk About Running - Haruki Murakami
When you think of an acknowledgements section, you naturally think about the people you love and those closest to you, but how about acknowledging those strangers whom you might have never spoken to? Murakami loves running, and aptly acknowledged those people who join in on this act in his memoirUnderstanding Comics - Scott McCloud
Simple, effective, full of heartThe Nine-Chambered Heart - Janice Pariat
This is a long acknowledgement, but I love the personal details Janice Pariat adds and how it gives life to the people she is thanking.Me and Earl and the Dying Girl - Jesse Andrews
Sometimes, that is all you need
Okay, time to pick up a new book and see what acknowledgements it contains.
P.S.: Feel free to reply to this email with any lovely acknowledgements you've come across. I love reading them.
Stuff I’m Listening To:
I read Michelle Zauner's (a.k.a. Japanese Breakfast's) wonderful memoir, Cyring in H Mart, and so naturally I had to listen to her entire discography again in light of the new information that influenced her musical choices (most notably, the songs that were a tribute to her mother). These were my favourites:
Lorde finally graced us with a new song after years with Solar Power
Lifafa released his new album Superpower 2020 on streaming services so of course I had to listen to the whole thing again. The entire album is gold
Bo Burnham also released the soundtrack to his amazing special Inside on streaming services, and it is truly an anthem for the lockdown
Links of the Week:
The Vine and the Fish: An animated comic (!) about invasive species and local ecosystems
Photopea: Someone recreated Photoshop in the browser! All features, for free
Here's another juggling video after last week's edition. It's as crazy and glorious as it sounds
Cat
Posts of the Week:
Acknowledgements:
To all my readers, you guys keep me going every week.
Love, Raef