The essential human privilege
Hello and happy Friday!
I read a profile of a film director named James Gray this week and it inspired me. I want to watch more really well-made movies, I want to gather friends every Sunday for a pasta dinner. How have I missed work from this director? Part of the story’s tension comes from the fact that Gray has been working his artistic vision for decades but hasn’t gained the kind of status of many of his peers.
As he’s gotten older though, some of his ambition to be included in the same breath as Kubrick or Scorsese has faded. But -
“…he hadn’t lost his drive to make beautiful movies, to touch an audience, because—why? Gray had puzzled over that, until he decided that the answer was, quite simply, that he cared. Caring for other people was the essential human privilege, he now believed. Caring was what both artists and audiences put into an exquisite work. The tragic thing, he decided, wasn’t caring about something no one else seemed to appreciate; the tragic thing was when you stopped caring, got too cynical, grew afraid to let yourself be seen to care and be cared for.” - Nathan Heller
I like thinking about caring for others as a privilege, both in the context of making things and having relationships with people. The perspective helps, in terms of writing or recording things that resonate with my audience, brainstorming ways to build that audience, or even making dinner for my kids. It helps me step back from feeling like things are hard or slow (or in the case of dinner, relentless) and approach it all as an opportunity to practice what I do.
And I like thinking about caring being reciprocal, especially the relationship between what we put out into the world - poems, stories, movies - and how/by whom it’s received. Like, because a novelist puts so much care into the plotting and structure and character development of a book, it moves me emotionally as a reader - I care about the work. It is a privilege.
If we’re lucky, when we put care (love in action, as writer Courtney Martin puts it) out there - in our work, our relationships - it comes back to us.
With love,
Leigh
CARE FOR: In this section, I highlight stuff that gets me thinking about the forms and functions of care and how we express it. Have something you want to share? Tell me!
OURSELVES: This week I took a walk in the middle of a workday with a friend. Work break, check. Movement outside, check. Good, uninterrupted conversation with a thoughtful human, CHECK. I recommend.
EACH OTHER: On the Made Fresh podcast this week, we talk about the power of friends. Sometimes it feels hard to find the time you need to put into maintaining friendships at this phase of life. Who’s got ideas? Who wants to come over for Sunday dinner?
THE PLANET: This weekend I’ll be at the Let’s Talk About Food festival at Harvard, talking about ways we can curb food waste in our kitchens at home. 40% of the food in the U.S. is wasted! Consumers are the biggest single source of food waste! Food waste means the land, water, and other resources used to produce/transport food are also wasted! It contributes 8% of the total human-caused emissions! Let’s change the story, people.
WE ALL GOTTA EAT
It’s true. Here’s one thing I’m making these days.
I know it’s fall when the French lentils - the cute little green ones - go into heavy rotation. I’m the only one who eats them with gusto in our house so I usually make a small batch - rinse, cover with water, add half an onion, maybe a celery stalk or two, and simmer for 35-40 mins, then drain and rinse under cold water and drain again - for my lunches or potluck salads. Here are a few ways I’ve eaten and served French lentils this week:
In an arugula salad with cherry tomatoes, cubes of feta cheese, and chopped mint and parsley
Tossed with shredded carrots, chopped parsley, chunks of avocado and sunflower seeds in a mustard vinaigrette
Layered with salted Greek yogurt, soft green lettuce, and maple-roasted delicata squash, all drizzled with olive oil and white balsamic vinegar.
It’s not cold enough for soup yet but I see it on the horizon.
Thanks for reading!
XO
Leigh