In David Foster Wallace’s speech given to the graduating class at Keyon College, Ohio, he reflects on every day life and making it 30, or maybe 50, without wanting to shoot yourself in the head. I was struck by his description of freedom involving attention and awareness, and discipline, and effort, and being able to truly care about other people and sacrifice for them, over and over, in myriad petty little unsexy ways, every day.
The speech was published for the first time in the Guardian the week he committed suicide.
This short piece, loosely based on a literary sestina, is not a tribute to Wallace or a reflection on his compact and compelling description of morality. It is an acknowledgement that a writer whose work I’ve only just started exploring can inspire a desire for greater care and attention to detail so effortlessly.