May 21, 2020

MA writes from Nashville:

Dr. Hopes,

In lieu of throwing you 1,000 parades,  I wanted to share some thoughts on the impact you've had on my life.

You blew my world wide open. You were the first person to show me that beauty and kindness could be a WAY of being. Sitting in your classes, it felt like you were sending lightning bolts directly into my brain. When people talk about "mind-blowing" experiences in colleges, they often talk about taking acid or seeing a band for the first time. When I talk about mine - I talk about you.

For my crew, you were IT. We would drive around the blue ridge parkway going through the things you said over and over again. We would sit and smoke and read the writers you told us to read, and then we would stay up all night talking about them. We all had lights coming out of our heads, and you put those lights there.

It was a big deal every time you would come over and meet with us. No other teacher gave a shit enough to do that, and we wouldn't have wanted another teacher there - because you were the only one that we gave a shit about. You were the only one who wanted us to see that life could be far more magical and far more beautiful than we ever imagined. You were a guide - we knew it was safe to go into the deep waters because you had gone there.

To me, you were like the father I've always wanted. You were impossibly kind and patient with me. Your generosity and spirit of openness always made me feel like I mattered and I knew I did because you were always there. The time you visited me in Ireland, going out of your way to show me around, putting me up, taking me out, was one of the most meaningful and FUN experiences I've ever had. Being in your company was like being golden.

It still is. Even in our infrequent chats now, you still are generous and fucking hilarious.

I think about your line, "A man moving towards his prime," on an almost daily basis. This is what I want to be.

That's the thing - reading your novel now, The Falls of the Wynona, which is lovingly written, it strikes me that that's the reason you won us all over all those years ago. We read your work and said FUCK THIS IS GOOD. I still remember Owen, Brian, and I passing copies of Blood Rose and The Glacier's Daughter between us and saying, Hopes is the real deal. That's why we hung on your every word - your words mattered - they still do.

Love,

Mike


The All Souls choir Zooms, and then observes Compline together. It filled the heart.