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My Lenten Goal: Postmortem
It was an ambitious effort to believe that I could write daily for the 40 days of Lent. But isn’t that the point of a fast or a habit-building pursuit during a season like Lent? I did not write each day, like I planned, but I made big strides. I spent more time than ever ruminating and jotting down ideas for the things that I did write. The quantity of writing was perhaps a disappointment from my original goal, but the quality of my writing in that 40-day period was unquestionably improved. It’s something to build from for the rest of my year!
West of 98 Store
The West of 98 bookstore at Bookshop.org now has three lists: my Top Texas Books, all the books referenced on the Rural Church and State podcast, and a catch-all Essential West of 98 reads. I’m hoping to steadily convert and expand that final list into a series of lists categorized by topic, as my time allows. We’ve sold several books so far (perhaps more than I anticipated) and I greatly appreciate the support! The commission on these purchases go towards towards the West of 98 project. Even if you never buy my recommendations, do your online book shopping at Bookshop! Their profits support independent bookstores. Amazon doesn’t need more money.
What I’ve Written
In “It All Turns on Friendship,” I explore the essential nature of friendships to the health of a community.
The first law of thermodynamics states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only change form. “The First Law of Community” considers the energy that we project into our community and how it affects the web of relationships in which we are entangled.
“Shameless Frontier Mayor and Booster” discusses an old-timey local propaganda piece and the importance of boosterism in a community.
In “Confessions of a Shameless Booster,” I divulge some of my past hesitation to adopt the “booster” moniker and my realization as to its importance today.
Books I’m Reading
Settle in, readers. It’s going to get intense.
My friend, past Rural Church and State guest, and purveyor of an excellent Substack newsletter
co-authored a book in 2022 called “A Field Guide to Christian Nonviolence: Key Thinkers, Activists, and Movements for the Gospel of Peace.” I received it as a Christmas gift and it’s been an important read at this juncture of my life. It has helped shore up my internal defenses against my flawed human tendencies (e.g. argumentativeness that is forever encouraged by the Internets) and helped improve my understanding of applying Jesus’s teachings on peace into life.I had a predisposition against reading the “classics” in my younger days. I have a contrary streak that combined with my voracious reading habit to read many, many books that I wanted to read, regardless of what I was “supposed” to read. It served me (mostly) well until Wendell Berry started advocating for Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and Dante (among others). Berry maintains that “Anna Karenina” is the most important agrarian book ever written. I might question mainstream reading lists, but I’ll not quarrel with Wendell Berry on agrarian reading recommendations. When the topic came up on Jeff Bilbro’s appearance on the “Doomer Optimism” podcast (and then got its own DO episode), I knew I didn’t have a choice.
So, I am reading “Anna Karenina.” Thus far, it requires frequent referencing of the family tree and character list to keep it all straight, but I will report back next month with an update.
Online Reads
Lenny Wells has written about spring. That’s the only tag line I need to endorse this fine essay.
The Drive-By Truckers are one of my favorite bands. Their unabashed blending of advocacy for the common man in the South with darned good alternative country/rock and roll is a special gift. They’re performing their legendary album “Southern Rock Opera” in full this year, for the first time in many years. This Garden and Gun article has details.
Austin Frerick has penned the newly-released “Barons: Money, Power, and the Corruption of America's Food Industry” and it is getting rave reviews and much attention from people who care about the topics that I care about. I will be reading it soon. This review is a good starting spot.
This is several years old, but I ran across it recently looking for something else: Bitter Southerner follows Mary Berry (daughter of Wendell and leader of the Berry Institute) in “Leveling the Field for Family Farms.”
Over at Plough, the always thoughtful Alastair Roberts writes about reading the Gospels for delight, rather than fodder for political argument.
Also at Plough, an apology to dandelions. Really. Just read it!
Listening Recs
Dan Stewart and I are embarking on a quest to discuss politics in a new way at the “Rural Church and State” podcast. We’re going to talk about voting, in an election year(!), through the lens of rural communities and whether candidates and parties actually have the best interests of rural America in mind. We released an introduction to that idea and a bonus episode with my guide to reading Wendell Berry, if you want to know why I’m always talking about this guy.
As always, thanks for reading along and supporting my work! Your feedback is always welcomed and appreciated.
James Decker is the Mayor of Stamford, Texas and the creator of the West of 98 website and the Rural Church and State and West of 98 podcasts. Contact James and subscribe to these essays at westof98.substack.com and subscribe to him wherever podcasts are found.