Books were a way to get out of my own head. I’d come to rely on alcohol for that, and after I stopped drinking, I felt trapped in myself. … A number of resources for the newly sober encourage people to revisit the activities they enjoyed as a kid, and that turned out to be really valuable for me. (Turns out I still love drawing, reading, and making clothes!)
The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa by Bernini (1652), Saint Maud dir. Rose Glass (2020).
And connecting these two works in my brain is Angels & Demons by Dan Brown (2000). Trashy as it may be, it turns into an exhilarating tour of Rome, and the insistent name-dropping of works and locations makes for compelling Google fodder. The imagery roils up my long-lost memories of crumbling churches and bloody saints that fill up a Catholic child’s imagination.
