Through These Winsome Gates

Imagine a world where age and disease have been conquered. Imagine a society where no need goes unmet. Imagine a place where crime is nearly unheard of. Imagine a world where natural death is a thing of the past. Imagine the lives of those who are tasked with slowing the growth of the population.

Challenge is part of every relationship. You start out with the best of intentions, you try with everything you have, and sometimes things just don't work. Grief and heartache are always part of the resulting equation. Now take that and multiply it by fear and a fallible justice system.

There are always at least two sides to every story. Dungeon Diving, it turns out, is no exception.

I picked up the book because I was taking a workshop with the author. By the end of the first chapter, I was wishing I'd read it as soon as it came out. It tells the story of a piece of Portland, Oregon that had been pushed to the periphery before I arrived, though I feel the effects. It's a weight that shows up when I speak to families who have been here for decades. It's a tip of the head when I talk about how expensive rents have gotten even in the last five years, as if I know what I'm talking about.

"I could see we were like two leaves being blown all over the place in that storm, that cyclone that had thrown him all the way over to where he was, and that had set me down nice and easy into this house you're sitting in right here." ~ Interview with John William "Blind" Boone