What Moves Us to Tears in Books and Real Life

Just been crying over a book. Been seeing this book for years and wondering what it was about. Must be a pretty popular book, I see it everywhere, it seems. A co-worker tells me she's read it half a dozen times, so it must be good. I better read it. So, I read it. The book is Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson. I was taken in on the first page by the beautiful writing. That rarely happens. I am also a very slow reader. And as much as I want to read tons of books, it's hard for me to sit still and read for hours. My friend Pat could do that. She read fiction. I hardly ever read fiction, that is, unless it's juvenile fiction. I don't read tons of fiction. The fiction I have read I have loved, such as An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser, which I read twice, and The Scarlet Letter, which I read twice, Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre and The Brothers Karamazov, they are the fiction that I have really enjoyed reading. But other than juvenile fiction, I don't read much fiction. And of the juvenile fiction I've read, my favorite is Because of Winn-Dixie, and now Bridge to Terabithia. That's the one I finished just now. I have already ordered the non-fiction book by the author, because I am very interested in picking the brain of the woman who wrote Bridge to Terabithia. Speaking of picking somebody's brain, I am reminded that Anne Lamott, my possibly favorite modern author, wrote lots of fiction but I prefer to read her non-fiction too. I read one of her novels, Blue Shoe. It was okay, but, honestly, I don't remember a thing about it, but I love to read Anne Lamott's non-fiction. I love her voice, I love her heart, I love the way she writes. Well, about the crying, the tragedy contained in Bridge to Terabithia is written in such a way that I would probably cry anyway, but I also found out today that another dear friend of mine had died, so I wouldn't be surprised if that didn't have something to do with my emotional state. I want to watch the movie now, and I found out it is available on Tubi-tv. I want to watch it tonight. In order to do that I will have to take a break from working on my list for Monday. I really think I'll have time tomorrow afternoon to work on my list for Monday, but I feel kind of lazy for not sticking with the music all night until I drop. Does that mean I am driven? Maybe. But I think it will be all right. To tell you the truth I am still deciding. I think what I want to do is take my laptop over to my bed and watch the movie, but first I want to mention the other fiction I've liked: all the Shiloh books by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. I read them to third graders for years and highly recommend them. I have not met a kid yet who didn't love the Shiloh books. I only read about horses or dogs when I was in elementary school. Not sure when I started reading books about people. I used to write stories when I was a kid in elementary school, and I wrote fiction for about six weeks in Morehead, Kentucky when I was teaching there for two years, 1998-2000, approximately. I don't know what happened to the desire to write fiction. I hope it comes back. Life just gets so busy. I haven't fully taken it in yet that my friend Betty has died. She was so filled with joy, I can hear the sound of her voice even now, and I suppose I always will. I knew her when I was reporting in Ellington, Missouri. We sang together in church and she was a real friend. After I moved to Kansas, we didn't talk often, but when we did, we could go on forever. I still can't believe it, but this is something we all face. I know I will see her again. I look forward to seeing her again. I don't know exactly what that will look like, but I know that whoever lives and believes in Jesus will never die. He says that in John 11:25-26. It doesn't make it hurt any less when you lose somebody but it does give us hope. And now I'm going to go watch that movie. Stay warm. I got the electric blanket warming up and going to put on some popcorn. Haven't had anyone to watch movies with since Pat died.