I’m happy to announce that I’ve read my snob book for the year. This brilliant collection of essays had me hungering for the lunatic-fringe side of writing. 

The first line of John Keats’ poem "Endymion" has long been quoted by pundits and other poets.  "A thing of beauty is a joy for ever," wrote Keats. But I wonder if beauty provides lasting joy? I often think of beauty as something we experience in the moment. 

The story of Dorothy Day's life reveals the  paradoxical struggle between her profound loneliness and intense joy. The two emotions of loneliness and joy are never at cross purposes and instead hang in the balance, protected by the bliss of knowing God.