Starry Sky Ranch

February Book Club: Farenheit 451

We just finished this month's read and I am pasting our notes below.  This was my third go at Bradbury's classic.  My son encouraged me to read it about 5 years ago.  It spoke to me on so many levels I read it aloud to the kids at home.  Reading it again in our current culture was almost painful. Still, even in the author's dystopian society there is the possibility for salvation on a deeply personal level.  In the end, though we strive together for a greater good, that likely starts with very personal transformation. 

Download Farenheit 451 Notes

 

“I did/did not like this book because…” 

 The general feedback was positive. The book was convicting, if unnerving.  Bradbury’s predictions of future technology were uncanny.  

 

“I wish the author would have…..”

The lack of closure and uncertainty of the future of several characters disappointed some.  

We discussed that Mildred and her friends reflected the stereotypical 50s female character rather than the post-feminist era woman.  While there are indeed checked out, frivolous, and self medicating women today they are not nearly as passive or concerned with propriety and social norms.  This suggests perhaps Bradbury did not have as good a handle on the feminine character then or now. 

“It convicted me about something in my own life…”

“It aligned with/opposed Catholic thought in this way…”

Given that this was a cautionary tale it invites much self reflection.  One comment made over and over was how striking was man’s inhumanity.  This circled back to ideas discussed in our last book (Man’s Search for Meaning) that to harm another you must first dehumanize him.  There was unanimous horror over the violence of the youth.  (“Those who cannot build must burn.”)

When asked about their concerns about imminent war the women comment that, “It is always someone else’s husband.”  In fact, all the suffering of others is routinely dismissed as having nothing to do with the characters personally.  (“Am I my brother’s keeper?”)

We discussed the fine line between using technology and it using us.  Much as we condemn Mildred’s complete escape from reality via screens, we should also consider our own screen time.  We discussed “phubbing” or ignoring family members while on the phone or computer or video games.  What should be our attitude towards technology?  The Church maintains that technology and machines in general are morally neutral.  It is our use of it that determines.  What safeguards do we have in place to protect ourselves and our families from those who would use these tools in negative ways or from the addictive nature of some technology? 

We decided the message of the author which is articulated by Faber is that man craves substance and connection.  Entertainment is a poor, but popular, substitute for both.  Do society/media/govt encourage this?  Why? What can we do to encourage authentic connection with others, particularly those who have been swept up in this cycle of fast-paced, often poorly considered responses? How do we learn to cultivate civil discourse in an era of increasing hostility?

What is the best response to this increasing hostility and diversity of opinion?  In Farenheit the societal conclusion was conformity of thought and the avoidance of uncomfortable discussion.  Can we do better?  

What can we deduce from comments strewn through the text about how other nations viewed this future society?  

What does it tell us that it took war and devastation to bring people back to their senses?  What does this tell us about comfort and suffering? 

What role does religion play in this future society?  

We know the Bible has been banned with other books.  We know that even non religious intellectuals were memorizing and preserving the books of the Bible.  The question is posed, “Christ is one of the “family” (a media character) now.  I often wonder if God recognizes His own Son the way we’ve dressed Him up or is it dressed Him down?”   Faber indicates that Jesus is used as a marketing tool more than for personal transformation.  Does this happen today? Does society ban religion or re-brand it to make it more palatable as well as financially advantageous?  

Beatty remarks that we must all be alike and how this must happen.  He says, “Not everyone born free and equal as the Constitution says, but everyone made equal.”  He asserts that books would make this impossible.  The assumption is that some would read more or differently than others and naturally improve themselves more than others and thus perfect equilibrium would be impossible.  

What does equality mean?  What does the Constitution affirm?  Are we equal in essential value and opportunities or should we be assured of equal success? 

Diversity is both invoked and suppressed in this book.  On the one hand the great diversity of future society is said to be the reason for censorship.  Strict control of language and thought and education arose in the interest of appeasing many diverse groups.   Beatty reveals society and business, rather than actual altruism, were the driving forces, “The bigger your market, the less you can handle controversy.  Remember that!”

Faber succinctly sums up by saying that each one is now made in the image of the others.  How does this compare to the biblical truth that we are made in the image and likeness of God? And if we are all made in God’s likeness how do we explain the diversity?  What is the unity and similarity the Bible is referring to? (Hint: it is our underlying humanity vs our individual characteristics. The soul vs the mind and body) 

The professors remind Montag repeatedly to remain humble, not to inflate one’s ego because they are well read.  The purpose of reading is not to puff oneself up but to give back to society, to rebuild culture, and to pass on something of value and substance to future generations who will eventually demand to know how society degenerated to such an extent.  

Faber tells Montag three things are missing from a world without books: quality information, the leisure to digest it, and the freedom to act on what they've learned.  Beatty and Faber explain that covertly discouraging rich language and replacing it with graphic and sound saturated intense media prevent contemplation.  Authority and peer pressure work to subdue the few who slip through the cracks and begin to form questions. 

What role does nature play in the reforming of Montags character?  What role can it play in our lives?  “…the more he breathed the land in, the more he was filled up with all the details of the land. He was not empty. There was more than enough here to fill him. There would always be more than enough.”

Why do we read fiction?    Fiction is a lie that tells us the truth. - Albert Camus

 

Related books and articles:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?fbclid=IwAR3IBG5Rf2YcMcBwVD0rrAO3OFcNRvrd0Fq0sNHzoN8k4bjMvAQVDCi-kkA&v=BiqDZlAZygU&feature=youtu.be

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/767958.Leisure?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=7WmAXTj6h2&rank=1

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36300732-the-reading-life?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=wszpqWeupA&rank=2

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8323492-my-reading-life?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=XVsDPy94sh&rank=1

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38502471-i-d-rather-be-reading?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=aTUA0mdUko&rank=1

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5129.Brave_New_World?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=8rjQ4U74U9&rank=1

https://www.goodreads.com/search?q=1984&qid=NucXgIgSyh

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3636.The_Giver

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/170448.Animal_Farm

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/74034.Amusing_Ourselves_to_Death

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53438190-live-not-by-lies

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/159979.The_Image

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9778945-the-shallows

https://www.netflix.com/title/81254224

https://time.com/5216853/what-is-phubbing/

http://richardlouv.com/books/last-child/

 

At Home...in the kitchen

One of my favorite organizing books has been Beautifully Organized by Nikki Boyd of At Home with Nikki. I am inspired by everything she does - her book, website, and YouTube channel.  I have been treating myself to her videos and then tackling similar areas of my home. We have a LONG way to go to get to Nikki level but small victories are very satisfying, even if our spaces are used daily and need regular reorganizing. 

Last week was the kitchen video which prompted me to clean out most of the cabinets and rearrange. Next up is the under sink project. 

One thing I caught in the kitchen junk drawer video was a thought about how having many branded items contributes to visual clutter.  Even if the space is relatively tidy it can feel chaotic when there are multiple labels and colors competing.  I realize now that visually appealing decor is often less about the big ticket items like sofas or tables and more about all those utilitarian things that make up the lion's share of our homes.  The closets, the drawers, the flatware, the measuring cups, the towels. Having those items well organized and visually cohesive makes a big impact. 

transitions

Change, big and small, always creates a certain amount of tension. As Frankl said in last month's book club read, some tension is optimal.  It provides the impetus needed to propel us forward.  Without it we risk stagnation.  There is a sweet spot, however, between sloth and exertion, between stimulus and overwhelm.  That sweet spot is different for each of us and for our children. 

Small people begin by tackling the hourly transitions between activities.  Sleeping to waking, eating to dressing, arrivals and departures. These can range from relatively smooth to hellish and we have a lot to do with how they play out. The links below give good tips for easing those touchstones in a child's day and encouraging them to meet them with peace.

Jennifer McIntosh shared a really insightful reflection about our older kids.  They are not immune to the stresses life changes bring. That looks different with an older child.  As she says, "Some act out...others withdraw."  She encourages us to consider the tension they present at these times as cues. They serve as indicators that our child is experiencing a transition and could use our help.  

"At touchstones along the way that child will signal that he needs help transitioning and making the next step."

If we are honest, we probably respond similarly in times of transition from place to place, during job changes, dietary changes, and so on. Instead of meeting that tension with irritability it is helpful to consider what is behind it to better meet needs.  We can troubleshoot the real challenges vs reacting to the emotion. 

They need our help, not our opposition.  It is usually less a test of wills and more an underdeveloped ability to articulate core problems. We are on the same team. 

 

Managing Daily Transitions

Making Daily Transitions Easy

Tackling Toddler Transitions

Big Transitions and Kids

Helping Adolescents Navigate Change

Book Club notes - January

 

A little group of local friends are reading together this year. It is probably flat out absurd to add more titles to my ever growing stacks when I have school literature to cover with the children as well.  The workload isn't getting any lighter and the state of the nation is nuts.  Creative ventures tend to serve as counter weight for me though. I need beauty and big thoughts to balance out the mundane and the downright difficult.  Seen in that light, more books seem to be just the ticket.  

In January we read Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. It prompted lots of questions and ideas personally and among friends. We discussed some overlap with Vice Admiral James Stockton.  That pulled in the Stoics which he drew from in his imprisonment.  I am attaching the notes, quotes, and links to related things that I collected last month.   These are not especially well-organized so be advised.  They are simply a very informal brain dump.  

Book challenges and book lists of modern classics are filling my imagination these days.  All suggestions are welcome! I hope you are feeding your soul and growing your mind during these rather bleak late winter days.  

Download MSFM notes and links

to gain mastery

"...we shall not fail to observe the fasts, disciplines and periods of silence which the Order commands;

for, as you know, if prayer is to be genuine it must be reinforced with these things;

prayer cannot be accompanied by self-indulgence.

This body of ours has one fault: the more you indulge it, the more things it discovers to be essential to it."

St Teresa of Avila, The Way of Perfection 

 

Help me O Lord to gain the mastery over my body and to conquer it completely; so that I may attain that magnificent liberty of spirit which allows the soul to devote itself undisturbed to the exercise of a deep interior life.    - Divine Intimacy

 

 

 

A New Command

 

Some moments hit you that way. I realize that this is no longer just my story but a complex, interwoven story that is ours, theirs. The love among these brothers and sisters, between them and us, between each other - it is complicated, messy, and tangible.

 It is shown by the one who volunteers to be the designated dance parent driving to a downtown hotel in a busy metro area.  

It is shown by the one remaining home to tackle nagging chores that have been chipping away at morale. 

It is shown by a brother and his girlfriend proudly surprising mother and sisters with chocolate and flowers.

It is shown by a sister, awake early and carefully readying her sister for competition. 

It is shown by a brother bringing his baby to his brother's condo to catch up. 

It is shown every time the faraway siblings take time off work and make the long trek home to be there for one of the others. 

 

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another."  - John 13:34-35

 

 

Keep Your Lamp Lit

If you don’t follow Lindsay Boever of My Child, I Love You on Instagram I want to tell you to go read her posts from this week.  I have long admired her most inspiring mother.  Here she shares some of the hardest hitting, truest truths about marriage and family and who would like to see us fail at both. 

The little Mother Love book does not mince words when composing prayers. In one, we beseech heaven:  

“Preserve us, Almighty God, from the deceits of the evil spirits, and from the malicious or perhaps well-meant though foolish language and counsels of silly people.”

Friends and I were remarking recently that it is entirely possible for someone to win a debate using a seemingly airtight argument and yet still be wrong. Of course the inverse is also true.  In the end this is not about looking good or being right in anyone else’s eyes.  It’s about the messy work of saving our souls.  Odds are good it’s going to be a bumpy ride. 

“I have noticed that we all get to experience each of the sufferings our Lord did with His apostles - betrayal, abandonment, isolation, grief. If you haven’t yet, you will at some point in your lifetime. It might be through your spouse, your child, or another person.
It’s how we share in the Cross.” 

God bless your efforts to know, love, and serve Him in this world and to be happy with Him forever in the next.  

 

Lindsay IG

A year with Lucy

One year ago Avery's other grandma and I had just made a rather white knuckled trek across town from the hospital where we had spent the previous day and half while Avery was born and settled in. We were pretty groggy and just sat down to eat our first real meal in a couple days when I got the texts from Moira saying she thought she was in labor. A flurry of thoughts ran through my head.  I quickly scrambled to call my husband.  Could we get there if we left now?  I had SO hoped to attend both granddaughters' births.  Lucy was wasting no time, however, and the snow was not letting up.  I spent the next couple of hours on the phone with Moira's wonderful sister in law who gave a fabulous play by play update until our little Lulu made her entrance. 

Lucy has been her own little person, completely different from her big brother, as babies often are. Chill, curious, laid back. She just quietly stood up and walked a few weeks ago, the way she does things - no fanfare. Each of these children take up their own space in my heart and I am so very grateful for them and happy they will have each other going through life.  

 

One Year

Today marks one full trip around the sun for our first (just by a hair) granddaughter, Avery Marie. 

 

 

 

 

 

The Lights We Bear

It was a beautiful morning for Candelmas today. We got up before dawn to make it to the early mass and procession in the neighborhood around the church. The tiny smoke trails wafting up from the children's candles in front of the colored glass windows as the sun poured in nearly took my breath away. 

 

This is an ancient celebration of the Church we repeat in our day. Alban Butler tells us:

The procession with lighted tapers on this day is mentioned by pope Gelasius I., also by St. Ildefonsus, St. Eligius,St. Sophronius, patriarch of Jerusalem, St. Cyril of Alexandria, &c., in their sermons on this festival. St. Bernard says,

"This holy procession was first made by the virgin mother, St. Joseph, holy Simeon, and Anne, to be afterwards performed in all places and by every nation, with the exultation of the whole earth, to honor this mystery."

In his second sermon on this feast he describes it thus: "They walk two and two, holding in their hands candles lighted, not from common fire, but from that which had been first blessed in the church by the priests, and singing in the ways of the Lord, because great is his glory."

He shows that the concurrence of many in the procession and prayer is a symbol of our union and charity, and renders our praises the more honorable and acceptable to God.

We walk while we sing to God, to denote that to stand still in the paths of virtue is to go back.

The lights we bear in our hands represent the divine fire of love with which our hearts ought to be inflamed, and which we are to offer to God without any mixture of strange fire, the fire of concupiscence, envy, ambition, or the love of creatures.

We also hold these lights in our hands to honor Christ, and to acknowledge him as the true light, whom they represent under this character, and who is called by holy Simeon in this mystery,  a light for the enlightening of the Gentiles; for he came to dispel our spiritual darkness.

The candles likewise express that by faith his light shines in our souls: as also that we are to prepare his way by good works, by which we are to be a light to men."

 

 

"O Lord Jesus Christ, the true Light, Who enlightens every man that cometh into this world, pour forth Thy blessing upon these waxen candles and sanctify them wit the light of Thy grace; and be pleased to grant that, as these lights, kindled with visible fire, dispel the darkness of night, so our hearts, being enlighten with invisible fire, even the effulgence of the Holy Spirit, may be delivered from the blindness of every vice, that with the eye of the mind purified may be able to discern those things which are pleasing to Thee and useful for our salvation; whereby after the dark trials of this world, we may be found worthy to enter into that light that is never obscured."

Roman Missal, Fr Lasance