7 Things I Paid Attention to This Week #011

shootings, Brian Doyle, trust, Top Gun, and John Irving

Hello, my friends… and Happy Friday!

I’m tired of death and shootings and nine-year-olds not coming home from school. How are you? 

Sorry about the heavy note, but that’s where I am. Brian Doyle said it well years ago after a shooting at a college:

“Father. I rage, I despair. I am ashamed of that. Both are small. I want to be big. I want us all to be big. I want Christ to be right. I want the word shooter to be forgotten. I want us to outwit violence.”

The shooting up of schools is getting old. 1.5 mass shootings per day in 2023 alone. Something needs to change. 

Here are seven things I paid attention to this week:

1. Brian Doyle left the world too soon. He was the rare breed of an honest and authentic faith writer, novelist, and essayist walking the lines of awe, wonder, faith, and doubt. One of my favorite collection of essays, and the essay quoted above are worth a look. 

2. I wrote an essay about a friend Erik who passed a couple years ago. Harvard says writing is a good way to deal with loss and grief. 

3. Podcast: I interviewed a Trust Expert Darryl Stickel. We explore why trust is at an all-time low in many circles, and what we can do about it?

4. You know I love books, and you can’t love books without loving libraries. Check out these beauties. I’m also fond of our downtown library in Kansas City. 

5. Ear Candy: A friend introduced me to the wonders of Michael Kiwanuka. Soulful, and throw back chill music. 

6. Eye Candy: We did a rewatch of Top Gun: Maverick. I think it’s a perfect film, a little something for everyone. 

7. I’ve been carrying around this quote from John Irving on writing. But I think it applies to all of life:

“If you presume to love something, you must love the process of it much more than you love the finished product." -John Irving

Grace, peace, and more grace...

Ryan