The Usual Chaos

My son Ian and I traveled to College Station on Friday. Back to Aggieland. Just the two of us. Sadly, we journeyed for my cousin Rusty's funeral. He was the truest Aggie I've ever known, and Ian volunteered to accompany me to be my "human Kleenex" as he phrased it. I put him to good use! On the way, it dawned on me how unique conversations with my ten year old are. We went via Waco, and as soon as he saw the signs, Ian said, "My friend James is gonna freak when he finds out I drove past Baylor! He's a huge fan!" Later, as we listened to some March Madness on the radio, he added, "I bet Mrs. Litchfield is excited right now!" as her Stephen F Austin Lumberjacks racked up the points. Once in Aggieland and at the funeral home, Ian asked, "What's my Aggie class year?" and proudly signed his name and '28 (!!!!) on a memorial for Rusty. Ian knows about college. And if you ask him, he'll say, "After high school comes coll...

I finished The Impossible Knife of Memory  this week. I was home alone for a brief moment, tearing through the final pages, hand over mouth, holding back tears. After closing the cover, I broke. Laurie Halse Anderson's novel focuses on Haley, a high school senior who is fighting as much trauma as her father who has returned from war with PTSD. Haley spent her childhood with her mother (momentarily), her grandmother, her kind-of step mom, and now her father. She's driven the countryside, fleeing from one situation to the next new adventure repeatedly. Finally, she is in a real high school with real "zombie" students and a real schedule... and it's too real. Over time, she adjusts with the help of a friend and a dashing, witty math tutor/hot boy. But don't read that and think this is a fluffy, sappy, drippy romance (and so what if it was?)! Haley is tough and strong and scared. She is responsible and adult - in contrast to her father. She is vulnerable a...