We all gathered at Chris Mallon's home on a lovely August evening to share our friendship, thoughts and a pot luck with Mallon beef as the main entre and Ghiradelli (San Francisco) chocolate for dessert. Of course, everything was delicious! Judy Bell's son folded an army of orgami jumping frogs to share with all of us and we had them hopping around and across the table. An evening spent among friends is always a treasure!
Our book this month was "The Japanese Lover" by Isabel Allende. Allende has written several fiction and non-fiction books, of which one, "The Soul of a Woman" was a favorite of Chris's. Amazon's book review stated that "The Japanese Lover" is "a moving tribute to the constancy of the human heart in a world of unceasing change" which is true, but it barely scratches the surface of all this story is about. More than just a love story, it's a multigenerational and multicultural history as well as dealving into multiple views of topics such as privilege, social status and aging. Allende's book blended several histories and changing life styles within its characters. It shows that everybody has a story, but one has to speak to them and ask about them to discover their story. Here are a few quotes from this story:
..."age doesn't make anyone better or wiser but only accentuates what they have always been."
"We are not old because we are 70. We start to grow old as soon as we are born."
..."shared pain is more bearable....We all have demons in the dark recesses of our soul but if we bring them out into the light, they grow smaller, weaker."
"How exuberant and boisterous the universe is... It turns and turns, and the only constant is everything changes."
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