The Afterword

Tag: Books

  • When Truth is Uncomfortable

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    by

    Peter
    in

    Who is the most famous or infamous person you have ever met? I’ve met a number of famous people over the years — famous not for their celebrity, but for what they’ve contributed. Artists, musicians, politicians, clergy, business leaders. The ones who stay with me aren’t those who draw attention, but those whose conviction shows…

  • My Ideal Week: A Musical Passage

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    by

    Peter
    in

    Monday – The Overture (Maestoso)The curtain rises, and the score begins with steady, determined chords. Monday is planning day, where the motifs of the week are laid down. Meetings cluster like brass fanfares, decisions gather like rolling timpani. It is fresh and expectant, but also weighty—anticipating all that is to come. Tuesday – The Allegro…

  • Beyond the Podium

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    by

    Peter
    in

    When I think about the athletes I most respect, it isn’t the ones with the longest highlight reels or the most medals. It’s the ones who carry themselves with character—the kind of people who lift those around them, who strengthen a team rather than outshine it. Here are some who come to mind: These are…

  • Fragments from a Conversation

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    by

    Peter
    in

    Interviews don’t always flow neatly. Sometimes there are long silences, sudden changes of subject, and words that trail into the air like smoke. That’s how it was talking with Wendy. Her story is not linear, not polished. It comes in fragments, broken sentences, and pauses that say as much as the words. What follows is…

  • If You Can’t See Me

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    by

    Peter
    in

    Picture a man at the edge of a crowd. Not trying to stand out, not trying to blend in. He’s the one scanning the space, not nervously, not passively, but like someone looking for a familiar voice. That could be you. You’re the one he’s waiting for. He’s a touch over six feet tall—tall enough…

  • The Plinth

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    by

    Peter
    in

    Scene 1: The Plinth (Tuesday) Every Saturday, the crowds came.They spilled from trains and buses, jerseys clinging to skin, faces painted in club colours. At the edge of the plaza, the bronze footballer stood frozen—one leg raised, mid-kick, triumph etched into the sinews of his cast-metal thigh. Children climbed the plinth. Tourists struck poses. On…

  • Kindness, with a Key

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    by

    Peter
    in

    For me, it would be my car — a 2006 Honda Accord.It’s coming up for its 20th birthday next year and has 250,000 km on the clock. I’m the third owner. I bought it from friends I know well — the kind of people who are fastidious with everything they own. I’d dropped in to…

  • One Traveller

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    by

    Peter
    in

    One traveller booked the flight because it was cheap.One traveller booked it because his heart was heavy. One traveller packed three books and didn’t open a single one.One traveller read poetry aloud on a bus in Croatia. One traveller could sleep anywhere, even on cold airport floors.One traveller needed two pillows and a fan to…

  • Philosophers Baffled After Agreeing on Literally Nothing About the Good Life

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    by

    Peter
    in

    A lively gathering of seven influential European thinkers ended in spectacular confusion this week, after not a single participant could agree on what it actually means to live a good life. The group—which included Immanuel Kant, Georg Hegel, Friedrich Nietzsche, Martin Heidegger, Jean-Paul Sartre, Michel Foucault, and Jacques Derrida—had reportedly convened at a private members-only…

  • Favourite Childhood Books: A Reflection

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    by

    Peter
    in

    When people speak of their favourite childhood books, there’s often a glow—a warm memory of being read to at night, of turning pages beneath a doona with a torch, of library visits and beloved stories that shaped the way they saw the world. My childhood wasn’t like that. Books didn’t feature heavily in our home.…

  • How I Overcame My Fear of Words

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    Peter
    in

    Years ago, I was issued a simple challenge: do something that takes you out of your comfort zone. I had no idea how lifechanging that would be. At school, I was a maths and science guy. I loved logic, structure, formulas. Words, though? They baffled me. English was a subject I couldn’t feel, couldn’t grasp—so…

  • Woman Announces She Will Be Seeing the Outside World Again, on a Trial Basis

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    by

    Peter
    in

    Two months after retreating into a semi-permanent relationship with her phone, local woman Clare Montgomery has announced plans to give “offline life” another go. In a statement released from her kitchen bench—via Notes app screenshot—Clare confirmed that she’ll be attempting to reintegrate with real life, as long as it doesn’t require group activities or being…

  • A Life Worth Listening To

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    by

    Peter
    in

    I’ve always been fascinated by people—what makes them tick, what they carry, and how their stories unfold. My first job after university was in IT, automating a production line. Because computers were expensive and labour was cheap, system development had to wait until after 4 p.m. So I started late and stayed late, spending my…

  • What We Keep

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    by

    Peter
    in

    I used to have collections. Years ago, I was deep in the world of second-hand record shops, trailing my fingers across shelves stacked with dusty vinyl and history. My treasure hunt had a clear target: old comedy albums. There was something about them—tiny theatrical worlds trapped in grooves. I found Bob Newhart, Shelley Berman, George…

  • The Day Mackenzie Scott Emailed Me

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    by

    Peter
    in

    (Or, How I Almost Became a Billionaire in .ru) It was a regular Tuesday. I was sorting through my inbox like a digital archaeologist—sifting through newsletters I don’t remember subscribing to, birthday discounts from cafes I haven’t visited since 2017, and the occasional existential crisis triggered by seeing “Re: Just checking in” from someone I…

  • You Trust the Next Chapter

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    by

    Peter
    in

    After 45 years across multiple careers — as a parish minister, university lecturer, and now principal of a university residential college — I find myself in the change-over zone of a relay race. I’ve spent my working life helping people grow and develop, and that won’t stop anytime soon. But the way I contribute will…

  • What I Can’t Stop Writing About

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    by

    Peter
    in

    So here we are: blogging about my blog. A reflection on the reflections. I know—it’s a bit meta. But I think there’s something fitting about pausing to ask, What am I really talking about, underneath all this talking? Because the truth is, I like to write. And in all these stories and afterthoughts, there are…