reflections: week 4

 🥀 the last full week of my twenties ~ the ripening years have given gifts i’d have little fathomed a decade ago ~the eyes to see my nature in a honeyed light, the pearls of calm & rest, the understanding that value doesn’t always come from ceaseless effort but rather surrender/ i am grateful for the passing years, the whittling & polishing they have been ~ i have often heard the twenties described as the best years of your life ~ i think rather than culmination, these years were the fallowing of the ground ~ it is soft now, burgeoning, ready for the roses of tomorrow…

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moments: ~hazy picnics with dearest friends ~ decorating my little patio garden with bits of broken china & glass bowl mushrooms ~birthday plannin’ & dreamin’ ~reading ~home apothecary brewing ~garden rose lemonade ~chocolate peanut butter waffles ~sunset patio dates 

book: “the other bennet sister” by janice hadlow ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

  i am not easily satisfied by an austen continuation or variation, i have read many, but i can confidently say this is the best i have ever read! following the story of mary bennet, before, during, & after the events of p&p, it makes you re-examine prejudices you might not be aware you had, while crafting a delightful story, devastating & charming by turns. it is not flawless, but it is remarkably close for a contemporary work. it pays homage to austen’s style & characters, as well as history & context, without completely abiding within the rules of them. a careful austen reader might notice a few changes or errors, but not enough to detract from the pleasantness & satisfaction of the story & characters.