Garrison Keillor, well known for his radio show, A Prairie Home Companion (from which he has now retired), continues to do his daily broadcast of The Writer’s Almanac. This has been meaningful to me for years. There were times when driving and listening to the car radio that I pulled off the road to listen more carefully. There were even times when I’d drive to a favorite destination for the purpose of being in a location where I could focus and connect more deeply with his words.
Now I am at home most mornings and have lost the immediacy of hearing it on the radio. However, Keillor has a website from which all broadcasts can be retrieved! Instead of listening daily, I’m more inclined to binge listen every now and then. On The Writer’s Almanac, Keillor presents stories about the significance of that day in history in particular writers’ lives. There is always reference to a writer born on that date and other tidbits related to the day in history. There is also a poem of the day to close the show. Besides the content, which is consistently thought-provoking, Keillor voice and tempo are very soothing. I swear he could make reading of the phone book sound profound and have us contemplating its existential significance.
You can find it at writersalmanac.org. When the mood strikes or you have time to kick back, hope you’ll enjoy it!