Hi Friends,
In my latest book, Animal Bodies, I write about all sorts of endings. The end of a marriage, of friendships, of loved ones, and beloved dogs. I write about the end of innocence and ending a pregnancy. I write about environmental destruction and mass shootings. So many endings. Some of these endings make a kind of sense, even if they are painful. Others, not so much. One such ending is the death of a dear friend, way too soon, to cancer. My friend Ilyse Kusnetz was a kind-hearted, brilliant human being and also a beautiful poet, and I highly suggest reading her books. They are here and here. They are smart and heart-breaking and beautiful, and I am glad her words are still in the world. But her death was one that makes me question the design of the universe, which I know makes me sound like an egomaniac—who am I to question such a thing? But it’s true; when someone so wonderful and so young dies right in the prime of her life, I think: Bad design. As much as I try to love the universe exactly how it is, I can’t always do it. So what I do instead is I write through it. And that’t exactly what we’re going to do today.