Joan Didion

Martha

Joan Didion said Martha Stewart was “the woman who sits down at the table with the men and, still in her apron, walks away with the chips.” May we all be Martha Stewart women.

“Keepers of private notebooks are a different breed altogether, lonely and resistant rearrangers of things, anxious malcontents, children afflicted apparently at birth with some presentiment of loss.” Joan Didion, Slouching Towards Bethlehem By: Gabriela Yareliz I saw this Didion quote, and I know there is truth to it. As a kid, I would write 15Continue reading “Dreamer DNA”

Santa Ana

By: Gabriela Yareliz Very little else has our attention— all eyes on the LA fires. (Unless you are the president, Gavin Newsom and Mayor Bass). I was safe, warm and in my bed, going in and out of consciousness. Every time I was conscious, my mind was racing with prayers. I was filled with gratitudeContinue reading “Santa Ana”

December 2022 Favorites

Hello! We are at the end of another month, and more importantly, another year. December was an eventful month. Winter slammed into us. States were affected by major snow storms. I saw a meme that accurately summed it up, saying: “Winter is coming. The entire thing. All at once. In one weekend.” The month feltContinue reading “December 2022 Favorites”

The Didion Estate

By: Gabriela Yareliz All Joan Didion fans know that her estate is going to auction in Hudson, NY. Architectural Digest quotes Lisa Thomas, a Stair Galleries fine art specialist, as saying that Didion’s apartment and her things, “It all just really told the story of who she was as a person, how she wrote, andContinue reading “The Didion Estate”

Inspired to Be Original

By: Gabriela Yareliz As I read the homages in the passing of Joan Didion, I see a lot of people noting that they wanted to write like her and be like her. One writer wrote that “What Would Didion Do?” was a guiding principle of her life. What I find so interesting about certain figuresContinue reading “Inspired to Be Original”

“I write entirely to find out what I’m thinking, what I’m looking at, what I see and what it means. What I want, and what I fear.” Joan Didion By: Gabriela Yareliz Many of us who love reading and writing mourn a legendary writer, Joan Didion. I’ve seen so many people reflecting on: her essaysContinue reading “Joan Didion”

Serenity

“For several days after that meeting I wanted only to be in places where the lights were bright and no one counted days.” Joan Didion, “Getting Serenity,” 1968 The words above were written by Didion after she attended a Gamblers Anonymous (G.A.) meeting. She said she hated the word “serenity” because she associated it withContinue reading “Serenity”