Pearl Buck in China

I had the pleasure of reading the following book, (in China, of all places, what are the odds of that?!):

Have you ever read The Good Earth by Pearl Buck? If you have, you might have noticed how the language of the novel makes it sound like it's been translated and how authentic the characters are. I always wondered how Buck, and American author, could nail a unique perspective with such believability.

After reading this biography about her, I learned that not only was Buck raised in China, she was pretty much native Chinese, so she was genuinely able to channel the eastern perspective. I also learned that as she wrote, she thought most naturally in Chinese, then translated her thoughts into English as she wrote them down (that totally explains why the sentences in The Good Earth sound like they've been translated--'cause they were). So, my big questions were answered by this book. Nice!

Plus, I had no idea that Pearl Buck was such a forward-thinking feminist. So, that was a happy surprise for me.

Confession: I'm not much of a biography reader because I tend to get bored. Although this book for sure had its slow parts (and its name-dropping shenanigans), I still found it valuable and I was more than just interested in it by the end. That being said, I'm not going to go out searching for the next fascinating biography any time soon.

So. Fess up. Are you a biography reader or no?

Get Out Your Soul Paints

Guys, Wyoming. It's a wild and raucous land with hearty (and soft-hearted) residents. The land there sings to me, and when we visited my sister and her family, who are lucky enough to live in such an untamed and breathtaking place, the land spoke to me with all the gorgeous autumn colors. How can these colors not paint themselves on your soul?

We enjoyed our stroll through the river bottoms with our curious little youngsters and soaked in everything autumn presented to us. Thank you, fall, for gracing us with your lovely presence. It's always good to see you around. (Don't tell the other seasons, but you're totally my favorite one.)

The Official Start of Fall

Fall only officially starts after the following happens:

1) Usually in mid to late September, you catch a whiff of it in the air. It's the smell that says something big is on the horizon (like Christmas!) and smells a little sun-warmed and musty but with a crisp, sweet bite to it.

2) You notice the first fall leaves changing high in the mountains and follow the color down to the valleys in the course of only a couple weeks.

3) Sweater and boot weather welcomes you with open arms and realize you can't stand in the chilly shadows anymore without a jacket on.

4) You harvest and juice your grapes, leaving your windows steamy and your house smelling like grape-y autumnal bliss.

 Homemade grape juice is totally the way to kick off the colder seasons, and for us, it's the official start of fall. This year, it was family tradition that Pepster was more than happy to help out with. And, we'll have many a delicious complement to our warm winter breakfasts now. Oh, yeah.

Chalk the Block

Despite the autumnal rains, the annual Chalk the Block event still took place last month. We took the little kidlets to watch the art in action:

I'm fascinated with artists who select temporary art forms, like chalk or ice sculpting. What an interesting documentary that would make: delving into the psyche of leaving your mark, but only for a little while. I think naturally most artists want their art to last beyond their own years, so I'd love to figure out what's behind the desire to create just for the experience and not the end product. Because it was so rainy, there were a lot of artworks that were damaged by the nightly thunderstorms. It was interesting to see the artists who were frustrated by the setbacks and those who embraced the art media and consequent challenges.

 

We're seriously considering doing this next year, and already have a few ideas of what we're going to draw. We saw lots of Disney shenanigans, and some pretty serious portraiture, but only a few pieces that were entirely original. So, obviously some people catered to their audience while others just wanted to show off their mad skillz. If you went next year, what would you enjoy seeing?

Cove Fort

One last pit stop on our way home was to give Cove Fort a quick visit. Oh, pioneers, you are so swarthy and amazing:

It was a humorous way to spend Kirk's birthday (Surprise! I got a fort for you for your birthday!) as we learned some interesting pioneer facts, saw some great pioneer craftsmanship, and listened to a knowledgeable and pioneer-loving tour guide.

The last time I visited the fort, there was an owl nest in one of the gun slots above the entryway, and there were 3 fuzzy owlets that we got to see up close. This time, the rain made the stairs too slick, so we only got to enjoy the main level rooms.

Have you been? What do you remember most about it?

The Grand Canyon

So, the Grand Canyon, it turns out, is in the mountains. Don't judge. Kirk and I have only been there as kids and don't remember silly details like altitude. On one of our day trips during our family vacation, we drove the 6 hours there and back to visit this world wonder high in the mountains. So, our sunny St. George attire was a little inappropriate for the cold mountain mists that greeted us there:

We watched the clouds roll in and out of the canyon as the mists appeared and disappeared in a gentle ebb and flow. It was quite cinematic, straining to see the gorgeous view and then the clouds suddenly clearing to reveal the entire majesty of Grand Canyon. Under-dressed though we were, we still took our time letting the magnitude of this wondrous world sink in. This world is incredible!

We also did our fair share of puddle jumping ("Coldy-coldy!" she says, after a frigid surprise. Duh. We've been telling you that the whole time.) and snuggling our pantless beauty to keep her legs warm after the history's biggest diaper blowout known to motherkind. Also, special thanks to the world-traveling Australian hiker who volunteered to take the only non-selfie family photo on our entire trip. What a nice fellow, and what great composition. Thanks, mate.

We were expecting our minds to be blown, and we were not disappointed. This may need to be its own family vacation some time, now that we know it is an actual camping destination and not just some stop along a highway somewhere.

Have you been to the Grand Canyon? If so, was your mind blown?

Valley of Fire

You guys. If you've never been to the Valley of Fire, you need to go, like right now! (Seriously. If you wait until summer rolls around, you'll be too roasty-toasty to enjoy it all.) We met up with my fun uncle and spent some hours wandering around the wind-carved canyons and rocks. (You know how every family has the fun and favorite uncle that all the kids like to play with? That's this guy. I still love being with him, and now Pepper gets to enjoy his company too.) 

This is where I spent my childhood summers...and now I have to pay to get in? Darn state parks, ruining lives. And so it goes, and so it goes, according to Billy Joel. Regardless, the fire-red rock, petrogyphs, and silky sand on my toes are deeply connected to my heart:

On our stroll to Mouse's Tank, a natural cistern in the rock, our twinkle toes toddler decided the best method for hiking was to to climb directly up and over any rock on the trail. That meant tripling our hike time, bless her heart. However, we saw three wild goats in the canyon along our way. Good sign, yes? We also saw this heart-stopping rainbow. What a view! Double-good sign. I'm pretty sure were meant to be there that day.

Good signs. Good company. Good day. Tell me about a good day that you had recently. What made it so great?