Simple pleasures... and less TV

I'm rereading one of my favourite books. I don't often reread a book, simply because in the face of how many wonderful books there are, there are too many that I haven't read! But this one's simplicity and poetry makes me return to it from time to time, to savour its contents with a sigh of pleasure. It reminds me of the things I appreciate in life.

It's written by Dr. Robin R. Meyers, and it's called Morning Sun on a White Piano: Simple Pleasures and the Sacramental Life (Doubleday 1998, ISBN 0-385-48954-4). I think I love it so much because Dr. Meyers speaks so beautifully of things that I love: conversation, music, books, parenting, pets, letter-writing, living the moment, romance, mercy, freedom, activity, and anticipation. By the time I've finished reading, it's hard to think of a single pleasure that he has missed.

Here's a wee taste from the first chapter:

Conversation is the currency of passion; it is the courier of concern. To be listened to, really listened to, and to be heard is so fundamental to the renewal of intimacy that it has become the desperate refrain of our time (p. 9).

Dr. Meyers goes on to prescribe that we cut the cord on our TVs, to be entertained less and to talk more about important things, even (gasp!) religion and politics, because that's how values are shared and relationship is sustained. He's totally right.

When our family was small, we banished our TV to a solitary life in the basement. It might get used briefly once or twice a week, if that. The rest of the time, we enjoy lively kitchen table conversation without commercial interruption, and all three of our girls have turned into bookworms, tinkerers, artists and musicians. They are also less consumption-oriented than a lot of young people their age who let television tell them what to wear and how to look and act.

Robin Meyers' book is stuffed with wonderful suggestions for living more simply and joyfully. I've picked up two copies through Abebooks.com (a highly recommended online site that allows me to avoid the temptation of bookstores by buying used books rather than new) for friends of mine. If the library loses this copy, I'll have to pick up a third. It's that good.