Today’s news on the death of Maurice Sendak was very sad. I found it impressive to read tributes from so many writers and from people of all ages and walks of life. Terry Gross at Fresh Air put together a compilation of interviews she’d done over the years with him.
He was so forthcoming on his life and his work and thoughts on getting older, loss and death. Over the years I’ve read interviews with him and heard the other fresh air interviews and learned so much about being a creative person, what that means to him, how to find something important to do.
You know who my gods are, who I believe in fervently? Herman Melville, Emily Dickinson — she’s probably the top — Mozart, Shakespeare, Keats. These are wonderful gods who have gotten me through the narrow straits of life.
The last quote on the page is this:
On his life
“I have nothing now but praise for my life. I’m not unhappy. I cry a lot because I miss people. They die and I can’t stop them. They leave me and I love them more. … What I dread is the isolation. … There are so many beautiful things in the world which I will have to leave when I die, but I’m ready, I’m ready, I’m ready.”
At the end of the actual interview, he took Terry Gross by surprise by saying how glad he had been to hear she wanted to interview him and went on to say:
“…almost certainly I’ll go before you so I won’t have to miss you… live your life, live your life, live your life…”
I just saw a link from the poetry foundation which seems a good poem for the day.
As for the rest—ah, the air now
Is a tonic of absence, bearing nothing
But news of a breeze.
— Reverie in Open Air by Rita Dove
I thought it was a cool coincidence that I had a few visitors today that had come following links to Chris Carstenjen who died, with another morris dancer Steve Adams and many other folks at the WTC on September 11. The advice Chris posted to his website was worth remembering on mine and I was glad to remember him and his advice today.
