Arts & Ideas

The Good Life

Oct 3, 2025
In this enlightening discussion, poet Michael Rosen shares insights from his book on brightening daily life. Dr. Sophie Scott-Brown emphasizes small local actions as acts of hope, countering grand endeavors. Political historian Sudhir Hazareesingh reflects on resilience and moral transformation among enslaved peoples. The Rev'd Fergus Butler-Gallie offers theological perspectives, linking virtue and community with personal grace. Together, they explore what constitutes a good life through various lenses, igniting thoughtful conversations on identity and everyday joy.
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INSIGHT

Garden As Shared Responsibility

  • Voltaire's final injunction, "il faut cultiver notre jardin," can mean communal stewardship rather than private retreat.
  • Michael Rosen reads it as a moral about caring for our shared planet and responsibilities to others.
ANECDOTE

Personal Earthquakes And Medical Reason

  • Michael Rosen recounts losing his son Eddie and later surviving severe Covid as personal earthquakes that required making sense of death.
  • He turned to medical understanding and reconnecting with friends to place those losses within human experience.
ANECDOTE

Keeping Someone Alive Through Memory

  • Rosen describes calling Eddie's friend Greg and hearing Eddie's joke book, which kept Eddie alive through others' memory.
  • That exchange became an act of cultivating presence and shared remembrance.
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