However unimportant our little lives may be, however invisible we may sometimes feel, we create the world around us just by being in it.
–Katie Haegele
Katie Haegele used to be a pen pal of mine, but we haven’t been in touch in many years.
[amazon template=image&asin=162106011X]At the end of 2014 I entered a giveaway on GoodReads for a book called Slip of the Tongue that sounded interesting. I didn’t realize at the time that the book was written by someone I knew. When I received notification that I’d won the book, I still didn’t realize that I knew the author. It was only when I found the book in my mailbox and tore off the wrapping and saw Katie’s name written in that font she used in her zines that I made the connection.
It’s a great book. It’s about language and Katie’s life and the role language plays in shaping Katie’s life. I recommend it to all you word geeks out there.
My favorite part of the whole book is the one sentence I used to open this post. It’s from the essay “Invisible Weaver.” That one sentence gives me hope. Sometimes I feel so useless. What am I creating that will outlast me? Am I doing anything that will live on after I am dead? Sometimes I feel my life is a complete and utter waste. But maybe, if as Katie says, I am creating the world just by being in it, maybe I’m doing ok.