Destruction

Evelyn: I took the man-boys to the beach, and unexpectedly Justin decided to participate in the building of moats, and tossing of sand-balls. I loved watching them goof around, and played right along, digging up a moat that formed a wonderful pool. As the boys tossed themselves to the waves, I watched as a couple jumped into our pool and proceeded to dig it deeper, building up the walls and pouring liquid sand into fabulous spires. I loved having Austin visit.

Monica: I knocked our DVD player off of its shelf while I was cleaning and it crashed upside-down onto the floor. I immediately knew it wouldn't be good and when I turned it on and pressed the eject button, it made a horrible grinding noise and the door opened only a half-inch. When Michael got home, I showed it to him and he set to work trying to fix it. When he opened up the case to reveal its inner workings, I flashed on some of my earliest childhood memories of watching my father at his computer desk, an array of motherboards and chips laid out before him, piecing them together. I remember being fascinated by what looked like miniature cities with tall buildings and small houses and tiny little cars traveling the streets of circuitry. I remember wanting to touch the little rubber-capped pieces that looked like M&Ms and my father exhorting "No toques!" (Don't touch it!), one of the few things he knew how to say in my mom's native tongue. I don't see these inner workings of technology so much anymore, so I was filled with a renewed sense of awe at the complexity and detail residing inside my DVD players. Who knows whose hands put this machine together, with what care and precision? It's good to be reminded that even inanimate objects carry a bit of the souls of their makers.