Observation, thought, behavior. One’s self.
It begins and ends in the mind: who you are and who you want to be, what you see and what you believe. We are reflections of that which we dwell on. And I, for one, want to be lovely. I want to be kind. I want to be gentle. I want to speak softly and never in anger. I want to be an angel.
We must reflect the loveliness we see in the world. We must hold the door at the gas station for strangers like we once saw someone do. We must pick up the trash we hate to see blowing through the fields because we want the grass to be green and flourishing, allowing for the beauty of Queen Anne’s lace to show through.
If we would all keep being reflections of the things we admire, kindness and goodness would forever prevail. We would all be a never-ending stream of mirrors. showing pictures of people loving each other.
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” – Philippians 4: 8-9
Discover more from Perpetual Girlhood
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Jordan Eve
I think way too many people these days do not discuss their religious viewpoints in public (probably ashamed somehow); too many who do discuss their religious viewpoints are not truly religious; too many other people have an utterly cynical attitude about the whole thing; and way too many others could not care less one way or another.
The way you write about your religion is wonderful because it’s SUBTLE and has NUANCE, but it’s also clear, unapologetic, and consoling to know that you have these feelings and opinions.
There is a crisis of meaning in society today that seems to be causing all our other problems, from the destruction of nature to the domination of greed to the deadening effects of mass culture in general.
Writing like yours could not be more relevant in this day and age!
Dale
Dale,
Thank you. And people forget how much a civil conversation can do to bring unity, no matter one’s beliefs.♡
Jordan Eve
I also want/ed to loudly applaud your essay upon grass.
You captured the reasons why grass is so horrible for both our sensibilities and our planet.
Our sensibilities and our planet are tied together in ways that most people still don’t understand.
Grass and mowing the grass are two of the worst ideas going forward which there could possibly be.
Using all those fossil fuels and artificial chemicals in order to create and maintain a well-manicured lawn that doesn’t sustain wild animals and plants, is madness, nothing short of madness, especially now with climate change in 2026.
Your essay nails the reasons why people are so obsessed with their lawns. (Herd mentality.)
The connections you drew between social respectability, and lawns, and the golf course, and grass, really nailed the root of the problem as well.
Thank you for writing this! The topic couldn’t be more important and the readability factor of your essay couldn’t be more clear and essential. And you do it all with ironic humor and aplomb, too. Wonderful work!
Dale
So simple yet so beautiful — simplicity always wins.
♡
Dear Jordan Eve
Hello! This is Dale Barrigar from Saragun Springs and Literally Stories. I just wanted to leave a comment here and let you know again how much I appreciate your website, Perpetual Girlhood (great title!). On this site, you express a serious reverence for life that is many things, including, but not limited to, heartfelt, profound, unusual (in a good way, as stated previously), rare, thought-provoking, mysterious, and intriguing. The clarity and simplicity (in the best of ways) of both your prose and poetry are super-impressive. I love how you’ve used a quotation from Philippians as well. The visuals on this site are also wonderful. An artist of your talents usually knows how good they are, but often “the world” doesn’t tell them enough. I want to thank you for all the work you’ve done in creating this site. I love how you write about nature, literature, the arts, and daily life. I’ve already subscribed and I look forward to exploring more in the future. Thanks again and have a blessed day!
Sincerely,
Dr. Dale W. Barrigar (from the Chicago area)
PS
Saragun Springs publishes poetry, essays, plays, fiction and photographs and we’re looking for new contributors…(I have a monthly column on LS and a weekly column on SSs where I’m also an editor with Leila…)
Dale,
Again, thanks so much for your kindness and support towards me and my writing. I really appreciate making connections like this through online spaces. Most times–for me at least–a writer does not receive feedback from their audience, if there even is one, so your comments inspire me more than anything. I will keep an eye out for your publications. Though, I warn you, I am normally what they call a “silent lurker.” But, I believe, consuming other people’s content is an essential part in our own creative processes, so I will gladly admire yours.
I will also keep Saragun Springs in mind for any future creations!
Dear Jordan Eve
Hi! Thanks for checking out Saragun Springs whenever you can. “Silent lurkers” are appreciated! It’s been a public site (started by Leila Allison, me as her Co-Editor) for all of one month now. We’re already up to between 100 and 500 views per day on average. We plan to take it higher. (But we know how slow the process can go.) By the way, we also do reprints, especially for writers we especially like. So, in order to submit there, it does not need to be a new work. It can be something you want to double up on and see published in more than one place, too.
I wanted to comment on your comments on Herman Melville and MOBY DICK.
Way back in the late ’90s at the University of Illinois Chicago, I studied with the well-known Melville scholar Brian Higgins (and we went out on his boat on Lake Michigan).
Your comment about Moby Dick was/is one of the most brilliant things I’ve heard anyone say about the book in a long time.
What I really like/d about your comment was how you lauded the first chapter.
You are exactly right! The whole book is contained in that first chapter.
A reader can fruitfully read nothing but the first chapter, and only the first chapter, and get a real and true, and deep, sense, of what the whole book is about.
You’re also right that Moby Dick is one of those books, like Tolstoy’s War and Peace, that we frequently read “at,” instead of through.
Ahab goes on too long sometimes, the plot is nonexistent for long stretches, motives become nonexistent too (not just unclear), and sometimes the reader wonders where Herman’s going with all of this.
I do love the sections where he talks about the whales and their babies. And the comments Ishmael, the narrator, makes about writing and reading throughout the text are also some of my favorite parts, along with the character of Queequeg, and Father Mapple’s sermon.
I like how Melville broke the book up into 133 separate, short chapters, almost like each one is its own separate essay.
But you’re right, it can be very slow going.
And you’re right, that first chapter says it all!
Much better to read that and stop there than not to read any of it at all.
Brilliant commentary by you on a masterpiece! Indeed, like I said, one of the most brilliant things I’ve heard anyone say about Melville’s book in a long time. And any attention at all is way better than complete indifference. So, thanks for discussing good ol’ Herman Melville and his book on your site.
Let me know what you think whenever you get a chance! Thanks again!
Dale
Hi again Dale,
I think you have a lot of well-thought-out opinions when it comes to literature and society. I can tell you also spend a lot of time studying/researching/fact-checking to make sure your opinions are grounded in something solid.
As for Moby Dick, I have not given it much more thought since I made those comments. Whenever I hear it referenced, I mostly just feel self-satisfaction for having read it at all; that’s more than 95% of the population can say. Sometimes, reading can be a practice in self-discipline, and that’s important too!
As for grass, you know how I feel about that. I’ll never understand the mind of someone who defends grass even after being presented with the facts of its harmfulness and uselessness.
I wish both of you well with Saragun Springs and its expansion. And, I know this is not the proper way to go about things, but, if you and Leila would be interested, I think my posts “EVERYONE IS LIVING LIFE FOR THE FIRST TIME” and “Why are we on this little rock?” would be a good fit for Saragun Springs based on some of the other content I have found there. If you would be interested in either of these, I would be more than happy to go through the formal submission process!
Dear Jordan Eve
Thank you for offering both of the pieces mentioned for Saragun Springs. These are just the kinds of things we are looking for. We have a formal (informal) review process that we go through for credibility’s sake but, again, this is the kind of writing we are looking for, absolutely. Thanks for sending both of these to the Springs whenever you can.
The clarity of your thinking and the thought in your writing are amazing. You remind me of the New England Transcendentalists, who combined nonconformity and positivity in their writing. Many are nonconformists, and many more are positive, but few do (or can) combine both stances in a fully synthesized way like you can. Your writing voice is artful, artistic, and simple in the very best of ways. As Charles Bukowski opined, “Genius might be the ability to say a profound thing in a simple way.”
I also read your piece “We’re Going to Die, I Seek Salvation.” Again like the American Transcendentalists, you are a religious and philosophical writer in the best of ways.
Also, I love how you used the William Blake painting (he’s one of my favorites, bar none).
And, I can say from my own personal point of view that, while I am not a churchgoer, I DO believe in a heavenly afterlife. As Walt Whitman said, “Death is different from what anyone supposes. And luckier.” (I’m not in any hurry to get there but I do believe in it.)
Thanks again!
Dale
Thank you Dale,
I have always admired the Transcendentalists, so it is a huge compliment to see you say that. As for incorporating my religious viewpoints, it is hard not to do so when we are always faced with the fact of death in life. We all have to believe in something or life does become meaningless, but I can tell you think so too. ♡