May 25, 2012

Adventure Is Out There!

Update: My goodness.  My editorial standards are not up to snuff, it seems.  Thank you to Kate for pointing out that Terry Pratchett wrote Small Gods and that his other book is titled Good Omens, not Bad Omens.  It was also written with Terry Pratchett.  I get those two confused, I guess.  Apologies for that.  My errors notwithstanding, the talk is still very good.

Update: Josh mega fail...Neil Gaiman hasn't even read Small Gods per this:

"Small Gods is one of the few Terry Pratchett books I've still not read (because I figured one day I'd write a book about gods, and I tend to avoid things in territory I plan to visit. It's easier that way)."

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'Tis the season of graduations.  On a flight back from Virginia this week, I saw a young woman who was traveling the whole way with her square grad cap on.  Kids around the neighborhood are doing fun things outside during the day.  Friends and friends' children are finishing kindergarten (they have kindergarten graduations these days...who knew?), high school, and college.

A dear family friend is doing a project for her child, asking different people to submit thoughts or words of wisdom for her.  Emily and I were doing a lot of thinking about it.  We wanted to be meaningful but fun.  Good quotes, bibles verses, and the like can be great, but often they are too serious.  They forget how exciting college is, with the newness of the place and people and the classes and the independence.  If there's one thing I learned from my time in college (or, maybe, in spite of my college), it's that life isn't just in your head.  It's not cerebral.  It's to be lived and enjoyed and celebrated.  That sounds corny, but I don't really care.

So, I drew this:

"I was hiding under your porch because I love you."

And for the more meaningful, here's that amazing, emotional clip from the end of Up, where Carl realizes that his life with his wife, Ellie, wasn't one spent waiting for their great adventure.  Life was the adventure:








And, in addition to that, here's a great commencement speech by author Neil Gaiman (whose works, including Good Omens and Coraline--to name a couple that I really enjoy--must be read).  He entreats the graduates, about to go into the arts, to, quite simply, "make good art."  Worth the watch.








Congrats to all grads out there!  Go find your adventure!

2 comments:

wicheekate said...

Josh, Terry Pratchett wrote Small Gods, but I agree, Neil Gaiman is wonderful and should be read.

wicheekate said...

err and the book he co-wrote with Pratchett is Good Omens, not bad omens...