Join us on Sunday, April 30 to discuss Lisa Bubert’s outstanding essay
Happy Thursday and happy almost-April, loyal readers. Today’s my last day at work before my school heads off for Spring Break. I’ll be escaping the Bay Area’s latest atmospheric river ☔️ and relaxing somewhere warm. ☀️ My hope is that you, too, find some time this weekend to rest and read.
I’m very happy to announce that this upcoming month, we’ll be reading and discussing “The Sunset,” by Lisa Bubert. This poignant, well-written essay explores Ms. Bubert’s experience working at a nursing home when she was a college student. If you have or have had a relative living in a nursing home, you’ll relate and connect to this outstanding piece. All of the emotions are there. Most of all, I appreciated Ms. Bubert’s attention to humor and honesty. I hope you’ll read it.
A little bit about the author: Ms. Bubert grew up in Texas and lives in Nashville. Her work has appeared in several publications, including Longreads, Texas Monthly, The Rumpus, and Washington Square Review. Her story, “The Coma,” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize.
Ms. Bubert has generously agreed both to record a podcast interview and to join us at our discussion on Sunday, April 30, at 2 pm PT. Hope you’ll consider being there, too. You can find out more information about the article and discussion below.
The Sunset
Young people are scared of old people, which is to say all people are scared of old people, which is to say all people are scared of death.
Because we’re scared of death, our society doesn’t care about old people, unless they’re our grandparents. So when Lisa Bubert chooses to work as an aide in a Texas nursing home as a 19-year-old college student, making $7.25 an hour, her friends are confused. Even before COVID, the annual turnover rate was 60 percent – not surprising, given the understaffing and underfunding. Despite the horrendous working conditions, Ms. Bubert finds purpose and meaning in her work. It helps to think of her Granny K when connecting with residents who feel isolated and lonely. She recognizes that death is a vulnerable act: “There is no act of love greater than to sit with someone as they face their deepest moment of vulnerability.” (13 min)
This month, I warmly invite you to read, annotate, and discuss “The Sunset” as part of Article Club.
If you’re interested, this how things will go:
This week, we’ll read the article
Next week, we’ll annotate the article as a group
The following week, we’ll hear from Ms. Bubert in a podcast interview
On Sunday, April 30, 2:00 - 3:30 pm PT, we’ll discuss the article on Zoom. Ms. Bubert plans to join us! ⭐️
If this will be your first time participating in Article Club, I’m 100% sure you’ll find that you’ll feel welcome. We’re a kind, thoughtful reading community. Feel free to reach out with all of your questions.
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