Stories from the Esplanade benches

Also: Do not numb yourself to the suffering in Gaza [❤️ Donate]( [View in Browser]( October 6, 2024  Dear Cog reader, Before my weekends were jammed with kid playdates and travel soccer games, I often spent my Saturday mornings jogging along the Charles River. I'd depart from our apartment in Cambridge, wind through the hubbub of Harvard Square to the river, and set off, due east.  I usually ran down the "Boston" side, along Storrow Drive. I can remember feeling the manufactured breeze from the cars speeding past, until I arrived at the relative respite of the wood plank sidewalk that passes under the BU bridge. From there, the iconic three-mile stretch of the [Esplanade]( begins. It hugs the riverbank, terminating at the Museum of Science, where the Charles continues to make its way to Boston Harbor. I ran the Esplanade in all seasons. In October, the air smelled of the dry leaves crunching under my Sauconys. In February, I strapped [Yaktrax]( to my sneakers, taking my chances against the ice and snow. Come May - and newly inspired by that year's Boston Marathon - I picked up my pace down the straightaway by the Hatch Shell. And in the dog days of July, I counted the steps until the next water fountain (because I knew the location of every one).  I'm embarrassed to admit that not once during any of those runs did I ever sit on - or even notice - one of the 266 benches along the path. [Allessandra DiCorato wrote this week about those benches]( about 150 of which are engraved with dedications, and how they helped her find community. It got me thinking about the fellowship we can find with strangers.  There is a game I like to play with my kids, especially when we're on vacation, when our brains are happy and untethered from the strictures of our day-to-day. The game is very simple: we sit on a public bench, in a park or on the street, and imagine people's stories as they walk by.  That guy makes the world's greatest meatballs. That lady is making a movie about baby elephants. That kid is only 9, but she's learning how to fly an airplane! During the duration of our trip, we recall the people we dreamed up stories about, if only to wonder what they'd been up to since passing our bench. They become a point of reference, just like any other landmark we've visited in our travels. It can be very silly (slapstick, bathroom tales abound; I have elementary school-aged kids), but in creating these stories about passersby, we are divining some sort of connection to them. We make an unfamiliar place more familiar through this sheer act of fantasy; building connection via our imaginations. It's not too dissimilar from the way Allessandra let her body and mind wander from bench to bench, and how that practice eventually led to real-life friendships in a new city. The word gratitude gets bandied about a lot these days. I think there are many different interpretations of the word - some, to me, can feel like forced optimism - but the definition that feels most comfortable to me is simply about noticing. Noticing the smell of fallen leaves. Dogs at play. A bench engraved with the words: "How perfect this is / How lucky we are."  Thank you for reading, Cloe Axelson Senior Editor, Cognoscenti Must Reads ['How perfect this is / How lucky we are': Stories from 266 benches along the Esplanade]( Like many young people in their first job out of school, Allessandra DiCorato spent her first few years in Boston wondering how anyone made friends. But when the city seemed especially impersonal - when all she felt was disconnected - the words of strangers reminded her that we are anything but. [Read more.]( ['How perfect this is / How lucky we are': Stories from 266 benches along the Esplanade]( Like many young people in their first job out of school, Allessandra DiCorato spent her first few years in Boston wondering how anyone made friends. But when the city seemed especially impersonal - when all she felt was disconnected - the words of strangers reminded her that we are anything but. [Read more.]( [Do not numb yourself to the suffering in Gaza ]( I have asked my Palestinian colleagues how they feel, and they have told me: ignored and left behind, writes Abby Maxman, who leads Oxfam America. The Biden administration has wasted time on performative workarounds rather than acknowledging Israel's role in obstructing aid and doing something about it. [Read more.]( [Do not numb yourself to the suffering in Gaza ]( I have asked my Palestinian colleagues how they feel, and they have told me: ignored and left behind, writes Abby Maxman, who leads Oxfam America. The Biden administration has wasted time on performative workarounds rather than acknowledging Israel's role in obstructing aid and doing something about it. [Read more.]( [Kamala Harris is more than vibes. Here's a primer on her policies ]( The current GOP attack on Kamala Harris - that she's all vibes no substance - is being reinforced by the media, writes Steve Almond. America's publishers and producers could cover Harris' policy proposals, but they're too busy amplifying her opponents' demagoguery about mythical Haitian pet eaters and rigged elections. [Read more.]( [Kamala Harris is more than vibes. Here's a primer on her policies ]( The current GOP attack on Kamala Harris - that she's all vibes no substance - is being reinforced by the media, writes Steve Almond. America's publishers and producers could cover Harris' policy proposals, but they're too busy amplifying her opponents' demagoguery about mythical Haitian pet eaters and rigged elections. [Read more.]( [Rewilding is a radical act of humility]( Some dream of colonizing the cosmos, but for now and the foreseeable future, Earth is our one and only home. The Wilderness Act was passed into law 60 years ago. We should seize this moment to reinvigorate bipartisan support for land conservation and expand wilderness protection, writes Tom Butler. [Read more.]( [Rewilding is a radical act of humility]( Some dream of colonizing the cosmos, but for now and the foreseeable future, Earth is our one and only home. The Wilderness Act was passed into law 60 years ago. We should seize this moment to reinvigorate bipartisan support for land conservation and expand wilderness protection, writes Tom Butler. [Read more.]( What We're Reading "The drums being seen as a particularly male and masculine instrument, Girl drummers are therefore incongruous, dissonant: hitting something with sticks, legs splayed apart. There is something base about drumming. Something idiotic." "[Girl Drummer]( Dirt.  "Whereas Democrats are fond of mocking Vance for being socially awkward, Trump's supporters see him as their very own Pete Buttigieg: a man with a theory of the case who is eager to defend it both on television and in real life. He is the sharp TV-sound-bite counterweight to Trump's rambling rally speech." "[What Democrats Don't Understand About J.D. Vance]( The Atlantic.  "Contemplating the audacity of Jimmy Carter's vision, the tenacity with which he tackled it, and the way he never wavered from the simple but strict tenets of his faith to nurture the poor and heal the sick, I'm reminded of the intensity of his bright blue eyes, how they seemed to look right through me and ask questions I dared not ask myself: What will you do to ease the suffering of your fellow human beings? How will you live out your faith? What lasting mark will you leave on the earth?" "[Unwavering]( Bitter Southerner.   "After the attacks of October 7, Israel's leadership chose a path of collective punishment for Palestinians in Gaza instead of pursuing a future that could have protected both Palestinian civilians and Israeli hostages." - Abby Maxman, "[Do not numb yourself to the suffering in Gaza](   ICYMI [A fond farewell to Joe Castiglione, captain of the Red Sox Radio Network]( At 8 years old, I imagined myself aboard the ship of night, awash on the sea of static that was 850-AM-captained by Joe Castiglione, the voice of WEEI. Joe showed us that baseball-and life-are not about winning, but about patience, and the undying capacity for joy, writes Harry Breault. [Read more.]( [A fond farewell to Joe Castiglione, captain of the Red Sox Radio Network]( At 8 years old, I imagined myself aboard the ship of night, awash on the sea of static that was 850-AM-captained by Joe Castiglione, the voice of WEEI. Joe showed us that baseball-and life-are not about winning, but about patience, and the undying capacity for joy, writes Harry Breault. [Read more.]( If you'd like to write for Cognoscenti, please check out [our submission guidelines](. 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 🔎 Explore [WBUR's Field Guide]( stories, events and more. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.](   [Donate](   # # Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences](.   I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. Unsubscribe from all WBUR editorial newsletters [here](.   Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here](. Trustees of Boston University on behalf of WBUR, 890 Commonwealth Ave Boston, MA, 02215, US Copyright 2024 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved.