So the Midwest nourishes us {...} and presents us with the spectacle of a land and a people completed and certain. And so we run to our bedrooms and read in a fever, and love the big hardwood trees outside the windows, and the terrible Midwest summers, and the terrible Midwest winters {...}. And so we leave it sorrowfully, having grown strong and restless by opposing with all our will and mind and muscle its simple, loving, single will for us: that we stay, that we stay and find a place among its familiar possibilities. Mother knew we would go; she encouraged us.
Annie Dillard reflects on the Midwest as a nurturing environment filled with certainty and comfort. The land, with its majestic trees and harsh seasons, inspires a deep connection in those who inhabit it. Children grow fond of the natural beauty outside their windows, but they also become restless, yearning for adventure beyond the serene landscapes. This tension between love for their home and the desire to explore creates a poignant struggle within them.
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All the things you can talk about in anyone's work are the things that are least important.
Race of Cain, ascend to heaven, And cast God down upon the earth!
