Slice of Life Story Challenge March 5 -Sunday Papers And Attitude Shapers



Sunday Papers And Attitude Shapers





I am of that generation who grew up reading newspapers. It’s where I learned to read and comprehend the world, essentially. My parents relied heavily on the arrival of morning and evening newspapers to receive the news of the day. 

 The digital age had not dawned. And while I have embraced the digital news cycle and am attuned to constant news updates via social media and news outlets, my phone and my watch, I still retain my need for reading the printed news each morning. I love the smell of newsprint in the morning, to paraphrase a more famous quote.

 There is a line in the chorus of Josh Pyke’s 2015 song, Be Your Boy that goes- ‘Watch the fathers collect the papers…’ well, that’s me. Strolling out into the morning light to gather up the plastic wrapped morning news.

Sunday papers are for me a slow and deliberate read. I roll willingly in the newsprint, metaphorically speaking that is. I am informed and infuriated in equal amounts. I am entertained and intrigued. Today though, my reading stirred me into word action. 






The Sunday Paper

 The Sunday paper
Shouts at me this morning
about the toxicity of Trump
The hollowness of Turnbull
and the continuing shame of Mosul and Aleppo.
Easy words to say.
Hard places to forget.
I flip over the Crossword
nestled among the cross words of the day.

 I move to another place
Where coffee lures me
And waitresses offer warm smiles
I search for words to write;
Engaging in a kind of meditation
Aimed at erasing thought of bombs
barbarians and barbed wire.
I seek some measure of sweet solace
In this morning of news from planet mayhem.

Comments

  1. Anonymous5 March 2017 at 16:46

    I soooooooooooo identify with this post. I, too, am a newspaper junkie. I couldn't wait to retire so I could sit and read the NY Times every morning without having to stop and get ready for work. But lately, it's Trump...cover to cover and I'm losing interest. Love the words "Engaging in a kind of meditation/Aimed at erasing thought of bombs/barbarians and barbed wire." Nice work.

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    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 08:49

      Thanks Barbara. To have the time to peruse the paper is a precious thing. I understand your thinking.

      Delete
  2. Betsy Hubbard5 March 2017 at 17:55

    Planet Mayhem, don't give anyone any ideas on a name change, haha! I too love the smell of the morning paper. My parents always had a daily paper. Actually, they usually had two, at least! We lived in a small town so we needed the daily news from the locals and the daily news from the big city. I always loved reading through the Sunday paper as a kid. I don't get it as often now but do occasionally pick one up when I shop on Sunday mornings. I loved the words you spun together that seemed to call out to you today. Crossword and cross words...loved it.

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    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 08:51

      Thank you for your response Betsy. Our history with printed news is not dissimilar.

      Delete
  3. Dogtrax5 March 2017 at 21:48

    We still get the Sunday Paper(s) -- we get the Boston Globe and the New York Times, temporarily -- and I still watch the driveway for the delivery on morning like this. Maybe it is because I am a former journalist, but I enjoy the tangible reading experience and the possibility of discovering an article about something unknown that I might never come across in the digital bubble of news feed.
    Kevin

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    Replies
    1. Dogtrax5 March 2017 at 21:48

      Plus, the Sunday Comic Section.

      Delete
    2. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 08:54

      Two reputable papers Kevin. Like you I read in expectation of discovery. The Printed news while in danger stills provides a reading experience lacking in the digital space. Thanks for sharing and responding.

      Delete
  4. Alice Nine5 March 2017 at 23:44

    I grew up in that generation... had my own paper route. (Hmmm, that would be a good slice.) Your poem is well-done with all the twists and turns that makes poetry a pleasure to read and chew on: your play on words, personification, alliteration, the juxtaposition a local cafe with the planet... I like the line: "I seek some measure of sweet solace"

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    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 08:57

      Alice, your paper round experiences might be great fodder for future writing. I reading Bill Bryson's memoir in which he told of his experiences as a paper delivery boy. A great read. Thanks for the feedback too. Always appreciated.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous6 March 2017 at 00:06

    I love this post. For years, I've been wanting to subscribe to my local paper but have not done it because I'm worried about looking at a huge stack I've been unable to read. But the printed word is so important, especially nowadays. Journalists speak truth to power, and I feel like their importance in uncovering the extreme corruption and collusion that pervades the political realities around the world now cannot be overstated. Thanks for the inspiration to support newspapers!

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    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 08:59

      My pleasure Landon. You are so right regarding the importance of fearless journalism. We need it more than ever.

      Delete
  6. Terje 6 March 2017 at 01:02

    So interesting how you moved from the memory to today to writing a poem. There are no papers published on Sunday in Estonia. I do most of my reading online, except for one weekly newspaper on Wednesday, that has pieces that can be read later too.

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    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 09:02

      Terje, your response reminds us that access to newspapers is a varying experience. Something we should not take for granted. You remind me how fortunate I am to have both access and choice.

      Delete
  7. Molly Hogan6 March 2017 at 01:15

    I have to admit to feeling ashamed after reading this post. Until the past 2-3 years, we've always subscribed to the local paper. Finally, after throwing away too many unread copies, we cancelled our subscription. We still trek out to the local store to pick up Sunday's paper, but sometimes I don't even manage to read that. (Hmmmm....clearly this is something to think about more--I feel a post coming on!) I also admit that I've made a deliberate effort to avoid news overload for the past year or so. I can so identify with your lines about the paper shouting at you with news of Trump. Just reading them makes me shudder. Great reflection and poem!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 09:07

      It says something about our hurried lives that time to adequately digest the news of the day becomes something we are less able to fit into the schedule of events. Molly, your right about the avoidance factor as well. when the news is constantly negative or horrendous in its content, we tend to avoid it. My search is often about quirky, unusual news items. It's a quest that keeps me engaged.

      Delete
  8. Andrea6 March 2017 at 02:02

    My husband and I just started getting the paper to support local journalism. It's turned into a nice routine for us, especially on the weekends when we get to sit and read it together. I liked your poem about the news; it seems a lot like that. This story resonated with this morning.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 09:09

      Andrea, I love your morning news routine. It is similar to what takes place at our place , particularly on the weekends. We sit side by side and read before discussing some of the issues. Thank you for taking the time to respond to my post.

      Delete
  9. Unknown6 March 2017 at 04:15

    L.O.V.E. this post, as well as the name of your blog. I miss the days when my husband and I could savor the Sunday news together. Now he's on his phone, I on the computer. Sigh. Is it too late to go back?

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    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 09:13

      It's never too late to change Carol. My wife and I find tie time for both. There exists an insatiable appetite to remain informed, to know. having that link to the wider world is critical. Engaged minds stop us slipping off the radar and descending into a banal existence. I urge you to go back in there!

      Delete
  10. Mrs. Estrada6 March 2017 at 13:47

    Love my paper. Doesn't matter if it stays in a corner for a couple of days, eventually I'll get to it.

    .. or get to yours. I'm such a thief!

    Thanks for this post -- I'm inspired, this is making it to my Notebook!

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    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 15:30

      I'm pleased if my musings have inspired a notebook visitation. May you continue to peruse the news!

      Delete
  11. wakeupandwrite6 March 2017 at 13:50

    I appreciate newspapers - as in eating off of a plate, one can pick up the food, take it in and put it down at will. Something harder that digital feeding which is more like hooking up an NG tube and being fed without thought to dietary and caloric intake.
    I love the balance of your two stanzas - the contrast of the present for this time and a present that seems timeless.

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    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 15:31

      I like the hands on analogy of newspapers and food. Thank you for the feedback.

      Delete
  12. b6 March 2017 at 14:15

    While I don't have memories specific to newspapers, while reading your piece today I was thinking about how much our preferences are shaped by the normalcy of growing up in a particular place at a particular time. For instance, I was raised in a Mennonite church (not Amish -- Mennonite) and one thing I love about this is that I was surrounded each week by the most beautiful four-part harmonies of classic hymns...sometimes stunningly sung a capella. Because of this...and growing up between two altos, I process all songs this way. Newspapers; harmonies -- they're both where we're from. Love. Thanks, Alan.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 15:35

      You write evocatively about spirit of place and the influences swirling around us at certain times in our lives. They are indeed pervasive and persuasive- and they are unique to each of us as you say in your response. Thank you for your kind and considered remarks.

      Delete
  13. BK6 March 2017 at 22:19

    Morning Alan,
    So glad I stopped by. Sunday mornings always began with the NY Times at the kitchen table. I miss it now because I am all in with my iPad. I think about returning to print but so far I haven't.
    Love remembering with your poem.
    Bonnie

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  14. Alan j Wright6 March 2017 at 22:39

    Thanks Bonnie. I retain memories of reading the weekend addition of the NY Times during my years in New York. On occasions it was so heavy with supplements it was a struggle to lift it. Glad you liked the poem.

    ReplyDelete

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