I am loving, loving, loving the prose in the BCR. Except for maybe the fiction contest winner. But the last fiction and non-fiction pieces I read were both amazing!
"Accordian Lessons"
When I told one of my roommates that I really liked this story, she asked, "What's it about?" I realized that when most people ask that, they don't really want to know what it's about in a philosophical sense; they want to know what happens in the story. That answer is: not much. A youngish woman, living on her own, takes accordian lessons and makes an awkward visit to her mom and baby half-sister. Big whoop.
But the way the story probes into human nature is astounding! How this woman learns to shrink her bubble and get intimate with people she barely knows is almost inspirational. (FYI: by "intimate" I don't mean "sexual," although the end scene might be risque for the extremely conservative reader.)
"Changing Seasons"
The author of this should totally hook up with the fictional protagonist in "Accordian Lessons." They're like peas and carrots.
Again, this is a piece that explores the depths of human emotions and other such intangibles. If I could say this is "about" anything, I'd say that it's one man's perspective on growing older. A perspective that I thought, at first, was unusual, until I thought about all the people I know who I think would find themselves nodding and agreeing through the whole piece. Just like I did. Reminds me of the line from my favorite black and white movie: It's a Wonderful Life. "You were born older."
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