[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"$fnH1tAm_96imKDE5wFHeC7HXxoGtMJq0josxrdmsAJDA":3,"$fHyNmtFTRYqvFzsJPFqN2B-QognfA2QIY5oF-ooQubbA":12},{"author":4,"tags":11},{"author_id":5,"author_name":6,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"bio":9,"short_bio":9,"slug":10,"image_url":9},29621,"Steven Sherrill","S",10,null,"steven-sherrill",[],{"quotes":13,"pagination":214},[14,22,39,60,91,112,133,147,174,193],{"id":15,"quote_text":16,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":19,"source":20,"quote_tag":21,"commentary":9},3450355,"There is a certain quality of light to be found only in midsummer in the South, as day, slipping into dusk, acquiesces to the filament, the bulb, the porch light; this seductive light is beautiful when it washes across dry cement, the sidewalk and stoop. The light spilling from the phone booth softens and cleanses all that it touches. It’s a forgiving and almost protective light. The Minotaur is drawn to it from across the parking lot.",6,false,{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":23,"quote_text":24,"author_id":5,"source_id":25,"has_image":18,"author":26,"source":27,"quote_tag":28,"commentary":9},651639,"The Minotaur comes and goes. He has for centuries. And there have been many bridges.The Minotaur pauses, as he walks, midway through the covered bridge that serves, in more ways than one, as the entrance to Old Scald Village. He rests his heavy snout against one of the wooden trusses. The Minotaur likes this portal, both ingress and egress, a breach in the terribly human construct of time.",2,{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[29,34],{"id":30,"tag":31},3326207,{"id":32,"tag_name":33},224,"time",{"id":35,"tag":36},3326202,{"id":37,"tag_name":38},6342,"bridges",{"id":40,"quote_text":41,"author_id":5,"source_id":25,"has_image":18,"author":42,"source":43,"quote_tag":44,"commentary":9},637367,"The sign says that the Scald Mt. Rod & Gun Club has adopted the highway, but the Minotaur knows an orphan when he sees it.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[45,50,55],{"id":46,"tag":47},3283176,{"id":48,"tag_name":49},5574,"trash",{"id":51,"tag":52},3283175,{"id":53,"tag_name":54},5870,"orphan",{"id":56,"tag":57},3283173,{"id":58,"tag_name":59},24145,"highway",{"id":61,"quote_text":62,"author_id":5,"source_id":25,"has_image":18,"author":63,"source":64,"quote_tag":65,"commentary":9},557793,"Unngh,' the Minotaur says.What he means is that every past is littered and scarred. What he means is that the present moment is the only moment that pulses, that breathes. What he means is that he himself is capable of great tenderness but has also done great harm. The Minotaur knows that sometimes mercy requires expedience. Haste. Sometimes it can't be about how much a thing hurts.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[66,71,76,81,86],{"id":67,"tag":68},3013531,{"id":69,"tag_name":70},2949,"tenderness",{"id":72,"tag":73},3013528,{"id":74,"tag_name":75},3533,"harm",{"id":77,"tag":78},3013530,{"id":79,"tag_name":80},7136,"mercy",{"id":82,"tag":83},3013533,{"id":84,"tag_name":85},11443,"the-past",{"id":87,"tag":88},3013529,{"id":89,"tag_name":90},32189,"haste",{"id":92,"quote_text":93,"author_id":5,"source_id":25,"has_image":18,"author":94,"source":95,"quote_tag":96,"commentary":9},538700,"If asked the Minotaur might say that he thinks gravity pulls harder at night. That the whole earth, on its wobbly axis, whips quicker through a sunless sky. It sure feels that way. But nobody is going to ask.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[97,102,107],{"id":98,"tag":99},2939333,{"id":100,"tag_name":101},2674,"night",{"id":103,"tag":104},2939334,{"id":105,"tag_name":106},3090,"stars",{"id":108,"tag":109},2939332,{"id":110,"tag_name":111},9561,"gravity",{"id":113,"quote_text":114,"author_id":5,"source_id":25,"has_image":18,"author":115,"source":116,"quote_tag":117,"commentary":9},364377,"There is a certain quality of light to be found only in midsummer in the South, as day, slipping into dusk, acquiesces to the filament, the bulb, the porch light; this seductive light is beautiful when it washes across dry cement, the sidewalk and stoop. The light spilling from the phone booth softens and cleanses all that it touches. It's a forgiving and almost protective light. The Minotaur is drawn to it from across the parking lot.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[118,123,128],{"id":119,"tag":120},2143093,{"id":121,"tag_name":122},778,"light",{"id":124,"tag":125},2143092,{"id":126,"tag_name":127},12148,"dusk",{"id":129,"tag":130},2143096,{"id":131,"tag_name":132},28019,"the-south",{"id":134,"quote_text":135,"author_id":5,"source_id":25,"has_image":18,"author":136,"source":137,"quote_tag":138,"commentary":9},358259,"It is Tuesday, near dusk. Night creeps in and strips colors from the scene. Everything is purplish. There have been many Tuesdays in the Minotaur‘s life. He wonders how this one will end.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[139,144],{"id":140,"tag":141},2113325,{"id":142,"tag_name":143},895,"uncertainty",{"id":145,"tag":146},2113321,{"id":126,"tag_name":127},{"id":148,"quote_text":149,"author_id":5,"source_id":25,"has_image":18,"author":150,"source":151,"quote_tag":152,"commentary":173},352594,"Cecie keeps telling him she’d like to take him home some night, husband or no. The Minotaur waits hopefully. Husband or no.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[153,158,163,168],{"id":154,"tag":155},2087541,{"id":156,"tag_name":157},21,"hope",{"id":159,"tag":160},2087543,{"id":161,"tag_name":162},25,"love",{"id":164,"tag":165},2087545,{"id":166,"tag_name":167},804,"mythology",{"id":169,"tag":170},2087542,{"id":171,"tag_name":172},2989,"husband","**The Backstory**\n\nThis poignant quote is from Steven Sherrill's novel \"The Minotaur\", published in 1995. The novel is a part of the American literary movement known as the 'Dirty Realism' or 'Neo-Realism', which focuses on the everyday struggles and mundane lives of ordinary people. At the time of writing, Sherrill was struggling with his own personal demons, including addiction and relationships.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\n\nBeneath its surface-level exploration of a dysfunctional relationship, this quote reveals a profound commentary on the human condition: that our desires and aspirations often exist in direct conflict with societal expectations and norms. The Minotaur's hopeful anticipation of being taken home by Cecie, despite her marriage, underscores the inherent tension between individual longing and social convention.\n\n**How to Use This**\n\nIn today's professional landscape, where work-life balance is increasingly prized, individuals would do well to confront this same paradox head-on. Rather than prioritizing conformity to societal norms (e.g., being a \"good partner\" or \"productive employee\"), cultivate the courage to acknowledge and act upon your own desires, even if they seem at odds with what's expected of you.",{"id":175,"quote_text":176,"author_id":5,"source_id":25,"has_image":18,"author":177,"source":178,"quote_tag":179,"commentary":9},347072,"Standing at the window, reading the menu of Obediah's services, the Minotaur wishes he could believe in what she has to offer: a promise woven into deep lines of his palm, some turn of fate told by a card. But faith is a nebulous thing and charlatans a dime a dozen; it's always been that way. The Minotaur both envies and pities the devout.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[180,183,188],{"id":181,"tag":182},2063222,{"id":166,"tag_name":167},{"id":184,"tag":185},2063225,{"id":186,"tag_name":187},2188,"superstition",{"id":189,"tag":190},2063223,{"id":191,"tag_name":192},46838,"psychics",{"id":194,"quote_text":195,"author_id":5,"source_id":25,"has_image":18,"author":196,"source":197,"quote_tag":198,"commentary":9},142571,"As the Minotaur walks to his car Buddy charges the fence, snorting, slobbering and barking maniacally. The Minotaur is no longer afraid of Buddy, and he knows the dog means no real harm. But they have an unspoken understanding. Each of them has a history; each clings to an image, however diminished, of himself and his place in the world.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[199,204,209],{"id":200,"tag":201},922675,{"id":202,"tag_name":203},150,"dog",{"id":205,"tag":206},922676,{"id":207,"tag_name":208},3671,"image",{"id":210,"tag":211},922679,{"id":212,"tag_name":213},4432,"understanding",{"currentPage":215,"totalPages":215,"totalItems":8,"itemsPerPage":8},1]