I don’t like to single out one piece over any other, but this was one of my favourite pieces you’ve written. That is mostly because it’s amazing writing and because I could really feel how enamoured you were with that red stealth, but also because I just love it when people are passionate about or excited by something — and you conveyed that so well.
There were some truly wonderful lines in this piece too, Michael. Some real wordsmith type stuff!
And synchronistically enough, I recently wrote a piece for the book I’m working on about going to a proper skate shop for the first time and seeing the first skateboard graphic (the artwork on the underside of the wooden deck) that completely swept me off my feet. And so as I read your piece I was totally relating it to my own experience.
I appreciate that instinct against ranking—I try to coach driven kids away from comparisons—but I’ve been feeling the same way about this one. It came out exactly like I wanted it to and says what I needed it to say in all four parts. Your appreciation (along with a few other readers’) lets me feel some teeth behind that conviction I can be proud of it. Thank you so, so much.
And I can’t wait to read about the deck. I loved the way this piece let me translate my old experience through my new eyes and voice, narrating it in a way that is true but expresses in a way I couldn’t have done at 19. I look forward to seeing how you approach a similar experience.
Yes, I totally felt that as well. The way I described the how I felt gazing upon that deck and all it meant to me was something I could not have done at 12 years old when I first saw it. And so, writing about it now, in hindsight, gave me more clarity about the whole experience.
I don’t like to single out one piece over any other, but this was one of my favourite pieces you’ve written. That is mostly because it’s amazing writing and because I could really feel how enamoured you were with that red stealth, but also because I just love it when people are passionate about or excited by something — and you conveyed that so well.
There were some truly wonderful lines in this piece too, Michael. Some real wordsmith type stuff!
And synchronistically enough, I recently wrote a piece for the book I’m working on about going to a proper skate shop for the first time and seeing the first skateboard graphic (the artwork on the underside of the wooden deck) that completely swept me off my feet. And so as I read your piece I was totally relating it to my own experience.
Bravo sir :)
I appreciate that instinct against ranking—I try to coach driven kids away from comparisons—but I’ve been feeling the same way about this one. It came out exactly like I wanted it to and says what I needed it to say in all four parts. Your appreciation (along with a few other readers’) lets me feel some teeth behind that conviction I can be proud of it. Thank you so, so much.
And I can’t wait to read about the deck. I loved the way this piece let me translate my old experience through my new eyes and voice, narrating it in a way that is true but expresses in a way I couldn’t have done at 19. I look forward to seeing how you approach a similar experience.
Yes, I totally felt that as well. The way I described the how I felt gazing upon that deck and all it meant to me was something I could not have done at 12 years old when I first saw it. And so, writing about it now, in hindsight, gave me more clarity about the whole experience.
One of those gifts of writing.
Thanks Michael :)