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a little happier. I'm working on a book about the five senses and how we can use our five senses

to give us a sense of vitality and connection to the moment and to other people. I found that just as

we can sometimes minister to the body through the spirit, sometimes we can minister to the spirit

through the body. I was very struck by this passage from Ann Patchett's memoir Truth and Beauty,

a friendship about Ann Patchett's enduring friendship with fellow writer and poet Lucy Greeley.

Near the end of her life, Lucy Greeley was struggling with depression and addiction and Ann

Patchett describes how she tried to help. I figured even if I couldn't make Lucy deeply happy,

I could provide the kind of happiness that would seem hollow if we had the money or the time to

stay in it too long. I booked Lucy a massage and had her eyelashes died. I took her for a pedicure.

I bought her the best pate I could find in Nashville along with SpaghettiOs and Hungry Jack

Biscuits and everything else I knew she liked. We went to a bad movie and then stayed for a second bad

movie. I took her shopping and bought her whatever she wanted and she was happy and I was happy.

As Ann Patchett points out, these kinds of activities would seem hollow if we pursued them too long,

and yet it's also true that our bodies and our senses can be a source of profound comfort.

I'll post a link to Truth and Beauty, which I highly recommend in the show notes. Also on the

happier podcast for our book club, we interviewed writer Ann Patchett about her novel The Dutch House.

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