Thoughts of a Grasshopper

The woman in the ward with the book club calling was released and no one has replaced her. So my lovely sister-in-law asked if I would pick a book and lead a discussion for the month of May/June.

I was hesitant. This is the book club not just with members of the ward in it, but the book club sponsored by the ward. The one that's announced in the relief society newsletter. There are many books that I feel perfectly comfortable reading that would offend many people, and while I don't think it's a bad thing to get everyone thinking, I also think church sponsored activities should be a comfortable place for people to create meaning as a collective and I don't think people can do that when offended. So, does the church sponsored book club read things only published by Deseret Book? Well, my favorite most meaningful books were not published by Deseret Book. It's a tricky situation, one I've always just avoided by not being involved in the ward book group.

I did tell Lori yes and decided to play it safe by recommending the one book published by Deseret Book that I love, Thoughts of a Grasshopper by Louise Plummer. Of course, I found out later, it's out of print. But I found it for $2.07 from a used bookseller. I hope other members of the ward can find it, too.

My collection of favorite thoughts from Plummer's collection of her own thoughts:

In response to the fable of the ants and the grasshopper, wherein the busy organized ants have spent all summer preparing for the winter while the sometimes chaotic ant dances the summer away, only to die when the cold hits: "I am a grasshopper. I dance in elevators. [...] It takes me a full day to dismantle my Christmas tree because I dress up in the decorations. [...] I have never prepared for winter or the Apocalypse. [...] I live in a metaphorical world. I read and write fiction. I draw pictures."

When I was fourteen (when I first read this book) I wanted to tear my shirt Captain Moroni style and write that on it.

In her written audition for a chorus: "First I shall sing in my lower range beginning at middle C and ending with low B, beyond which I just grunt. Here goes: La La La La La La La La La
Now for my upper range--beginning a middle C and moving up: La La
As you can see, I have the range of Nancy Sinatra."

On revealing that families and wards and stakes and entire religions are not perfect and we shouldn't pretend that they are: "[O]ne sunny afternoon in Saint Paul, Minnesota, that same [son] lunged at me, grasped me around the throat in a headlock, pulled me to the floor, and said, strangling me, 'Don't tell me what to do, or I'll kill you. Do you hear me? I'll kill you.' [...] That afternoon, even now, stands out as the most humiliating day of my life. I had earned all the individual awards. I had had three years of perfect attendance in Mutual, sacrament, and Sunday School meetings. [...] Sometimes, living in a family means suffering."

And I felt renewed enthusiasm for this blog when reading her entry on keeping journals: "Writing a journal is a way of making a mark in the world." So that's what I'm doing. Making a mark. Forgive me for making it so publicly.