Prologue 12/27/11

For Christmas, my mom gave me the book, Eat, Pray, Love.  To me, reading it seems kind of, well, gay.  Not having sex with another man "gay".  I know, "what other kind of "gay" is there?"  Well, I'll tell you.  The kind of "gay" I'm talking about was the name we aggressive, insecure little boys called each other back when we were children; before we had any idea of sexuality, back when girls still had germs, back when we really had no idea what we were talking about, when we didn't know that saying, "you're gay" would actually hurt a grown-ups feelings (hurt anyone for that matter, other than the other little boy who fell victim to the seized opportunity to call him "gay").  Pansy, wimp, girl, baby never seemed to cut it.  And, I can't think of a better word to use to describe my feelings when it comes to reading this book.

HOWEVER, all that fear and insensitive language aside, I've decided to give Eat, Pray, Love a read, because something occurred to me:  My mom gave the book to me as a gift . . . for a reason.  And, the book meant something to her.  Now, she and I don't relate on too many levels.  But, here's a level on which we can perhaps relate:  The spiritual.  Since recovering from alcoholism, I've sought out a spiritual path.  Perhaps there's something in this book for me.  If nothing else, it could give my mom and I something to talk about.  We could share ideas as well as books.  And, maybe, it could help us get to know each other a little better.

I don't want to read it in public, because I still care too much what people think about me.  So, I'll read it in private . . . maybe part of my morning meditation practice . . . maybe there will be something inspirational in it.  Let's see how many days I procrastinate.

I must make a note here that some of this blog is written after the fact.  I don't know why I got this idea to not only read Eat, Pray, Love, but why I also got the idea to comment on it as I go.  Some of the commentary goes off on tangents.  I'm including said tangents because sometimes Ms. Gilbert inspired me to think creatively or spiritually about other aspects of my life.  And, inspiration is the greatest gift, I think, one artist can give to another.  So, I guess this blog is not so much about me reading the book and writing about it, but more about me reading the book and writing about the affect it has on me.