Read. Then talk.

When you don’t talk, there’s a lot of stuff that ends up not getting said.

Over an extended breakfast this morning, I finished this book. I must tell you, I really liked it. It was written in the voice of a 16-year old Wisconsin farm girl. I spent a few of my formative years on a farm, and there was a lot in this book that I could relate to. There’s a lot of football in this story as well, and although I’ve never really been a football fan, she does such a good job of loving and breaking-down the sport, that it was hard not to feel like I was right there watching and cheering and thoroughly enjoying it. One of my favorite analogies was about apologizing. She describes it “like punching a bruise.” The other one has to do with being a cow. But you’ll need to read it to fully appreciate that one. At 10:30 last night, I flipped through the pages left in the book, and SO wanted to finish it, but my eyelids were not cooperating. By page 241 this morning, an unexpected rush of emotion overcame me as I was lifting the spoon of oatmeal to my mouth. It’s such a witty book, the lump in my throat surprised me. At page 272 I heard myself laughing, and looked up to realize the cat was licking my empty bowl. So I put it on the floor and found a peanut butter cookie to nibble on as I finished the book. Do find a copy if you have ever been a high school teenager. The take-away for me? It’s important to keep talking.