May Musings
Chronic Pain, A Love Story, and the Dewey Decimal System
It may be the beginning of May, but for me the month of May has always felt like the beginning of the end. May means the finish line for the current school year is within sight. The days seem to pick up momentum, and it can feel like time is suddenly moving a whole lot faster. All the more reason to try and “savor the flavor” as we say in our family.
In case you missed them, I’m including links to my last two blog posts:
April 22nd: It’s Not Easy
April 29th: Atmosphere
Writing Prompt:
For this week’s Writing Prompt, I turned to another Barbara Abercrombie-authored book, Writing Out the Storm. I have read this book multiple times, and each reading facilitates different writing. I find different prompts resonate with me differently at different times. In fact, several years ago, the prompt below served as the inspiration behind one of my published personal essays, Why I Can’t ‘Wear My Scar’ With Pride. The prompt:
“Write about your body trying to take you hostage.
Write about scars that show.
Write about scars that don’t.
Write about hiding scars, or not hiding them.”
Something I’m Wondering About:
During college, I worked part-time in a public library. I loved the library, and one of my closest friends today is a woman I met at the library. (She still works there.) In my first role, I was a Page — the person who empties the outdoor book drop, the person who places recently returned books back on the shelves in their proper place. Which brings me to my wondering. For a while, my area of responsibility was the 800 Section which consists of books about literature, dictionaries, collections of essays and speeches, and well-known literary works such as Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets, for example. We teach children non-fiction books are those that are not fiction. These books are true. Yet, Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet can be found at 822.33. (And yes, I remember the exact call number.) Is it just me that thinks it’s confusing to have well-known and well-regarded literary works shelved in a non-fiction space? Or, is it just me that spends any amount of time thinking about the Dewey Decimal System? (And yes, I realize that prospect is entirely possible.)
Wendy Stamp of Approval:
This short video (about 4 minutes long) includes a mini-interview with Taylor Jenkins Reid about her novel, Atmosphere. The book was a Good Morning America Book Club Pick.
This Date in History:
On May 3rd, 1937, Margaret Mitchell won the Pulitzer Prize in Novel for Gone with the Wind. (Ten years later, the Novel category would be re-named Fiction.)
On May 3rd, 2025, Lady Gaga’s free concert in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, drew an estimated 2.5 million attendees; making it the largest concert in history for a female performer.
Until Next Time —
I hope in your reading you come across a passage that momentarily stops you, simply because it’s an example of some darn fine writing. (In which case, there’s nothing simple about it.)
Reminder: My next blog post publishes on Wednesday, May 6th. If you haven’t already, please visit my website to sign up. You can expect my next Substack to arrive in your inbox on Sunday, May 17th.
Love the picture, Wendy 🥰 I *still* want to make it down for the book festival one year!
My first job was as a Page! One of my jobs was rewinding the cassette tapes of stories on tape in the Children's Department =)
Your post about the Dewey Decimal system reminds me that we also consider Laura Ingalls Wilder's books to be non-fiction, and yet, they are shelved in the fiction section! Things that make you go 'Hmmm....'