for:
A dear friend with whom to spend this most family of holidays
His house and his town, which feel like my home
My newfound ability to make pie crust
My family, who can always be relied upon to remember me even though I live thousands of miles away
Aestheticism and decadence and the day I discovered them on the wall of the National Gallery in Washington
Folk music and its attendant political and moral values
The academic discipline which makes me myself
Friends who keep me from getting trapped too far inside it
The men who a hundred and fifty years ago read Plato, telling me how to read myself
Wool blankets and wood fires
Laughter, tears, and the rest of human emotion
A life of the best mentors and teachers anyone could ask for
A stomach full of autumn fruits and vegetables
Self-reliance
The humanities and humanity
Love
Hope
Freedom
Beauty
Emily Rutherford 