Saturday, November 24, 2012

Trifecta

 

This weekend's challenge: Give us a few of your favorite things, in whichever form you want, in 33 words exactly.


A little preamble is in order. This entry is an homage to one of my favorite writers, Nora Ephron. I adored her work. It was without pretense and was always, always highly relate-able. When she passed away, it was as though I had lost a friend -- even though our lives could not have been more different. She was a child of privilege, born to a husband-wife screenwriting duo in Beverly Hills. She was very close to her sisters. She was a mother, thrice married. She was Jewish. None of those could be said of me. And yet, as I read her essays about life, I understood every word.

Last weekend, for my birthday, I got a copy of her last book: I Remember Nothing. It's a poignant, candid, funny exploration of aging. It ends with sister pieces called "What I Won't Miss" and "What I Will Miss." In retrospect, it's clear she knew she was losing her battle with cancer when she composed these lists. This makes them even more meaningful. 

And so, in my own humble way, I'm paying tribute to my girl Nora by using her "What I Will Miss" format for "My Favorite Things."

 

WHAT I WILL MISS


The skyline
My cats
Train rides
Coffee shop breakfasts
Blue skies
Gray skies
Long talks
Good books
Writing
Movies, even bad ones
The Beatles
Watching my niece and nephew

 


PS There's a regular contributor here at Trifecta whose style reminds me of Nora Ephron -- and I mean that as high praise. Like Nora, she knows what to include to give her writing authenticity, and what to leave out so it still moves. Her name is Gina, and here's her blog. (Yes, I do care what you write!)

About the photos: Life Magazine makes a library of their archive images available for free to use for “non-commercial personal purposes."

11 comments:

  1. Dear Sam,

    I haven't read any work of Nora Ephron but knowing that you think highly of her, I'd like to try. It's so sweet of you to link one of the blogs here in your post.

    Happy belated birthday!

    Pearl

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  2. I, too, love Norah! And your favorites. Oooh that skyline on a clear day/night rocks my heart! Books, movies, kids and the sky. Not kitties though. Sorry!

    Gal, you brought tears to my eyes and warmed my heart in a way I can't properly express. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I needed this. And I hope YOU know how much I love visiting your world here.

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  3. Great list. But watching a skyline (hence my profile pic) and coffee shop breakfasts are two of my favs. Beatles too, but I've worn out all my vinyl. Nice job.

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  4. Terrific list!

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  5. you said so much in just 33 words.

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  6. I do like these favorite things. They are nice favorite things. I might borrow some lol (:

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  7. Didn't see your P.S. about Gina until later but I echo that sentiment 100%. Nice that you gave her the shout out.

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  8. This is lovely. I really enjoyed your preface, too. Thanks for linking up.

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  9. I like how you included "even bad ones" to your line on movies.

    I also am a fan of Gina's writing :)

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  10. I love the way you wrote your post as a tribute to Nora! I'm going to create my own list of things I'll miss for my journal.

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