January 2024:
Moonrise by Sarah Crossan
“When Ed shares with Joe the “big news” of a last minute appeal issue, Joe sees the desperation and futility of it all. And it dawns on Joe that Ed doesn’t believe he’s going to die.
But what if it’s not that Ed doesn’t believe he’s going to die? It’s him thinking that as long as he’s alive he has to manufacture hope for the people who love him to cling to? That’s how it was for me when my parents were alive. I had to be the strong guy, never letting them see me sweat. Somehow getting us to the finish line so whatever happens happens as quickly as possible.
The most important lesson Death Row taught me is to tell my family and friends I love love them. If you know me you know I tell you I love you. This is why. And this is why Moonrise is worthy for us to read!”
“Time travel me back
so I can say good bye and mean it.
Give me the final moment again
to use the words no one in our house
ever dared say to one another —
scared of being sappy or over emotional.
Give me three seconds with Ed,
and I will tell him the words and I will mean them.
I will say,
I love you.”
Charles’ Reflection:
Greetings and salutations and best wishes for a great new year in 2024! We are starting year two of our Words That Sustain Me and I want to thank everyone for their support and participation. We've read some really amazing books and have even more lined up for 2024.
The book that we are reading in the month of January is titled, "Moonrise" by Sara Crossan. This book traces back to our joint reading of We'll Fly away with the Texas Coalition To Abolish The Death Penalty's book club. They read this book a few months ago and that's how it got on our radar. Moonrise is a another book written in verse making it a quick read but makes it no less powerful.
Moonrise is about a teenage boy named Joe who hasn't seen his brother Ed in ten years. You see, Ed is locked up on death row. Now his execution date has been set and Joe is determined to reconnect with Ed and spend those last weeks with his brother.
Moonrise is such a great book, but for me it was so sad. The reason it made me feel sad was because I related to Ed's character and also to Joe, his sister Angela, and aunt Karen. None of the characters ever had a chance to avoid the suffering, grief and heartache. While Moonrise is a work of fiction, the story it tells apply to 99% of prisoners on death row in the USA.
TEAM WRONG. When a person is sent to death row it's not just them that come to live in a situation like this. So does their family and friends. Although they did nothing wrong, they're made victims as well. Our family aren't the people anyone pities. At minimum, nobody cares how poor or hungry they are. Somehow they're perpetrators by proxy, tainted because they share familial blood with their condemned relative.
If the situation is murky and they fall under suspicion of doing wrong by the authorities, heaven help them. They will be treated like criminals. Why? Because they're on the other side of right, players for the wrong team.
A PRIZE. When Joe gets a call from Ed's attorney who sounds breezy and upbeat as could be, for a second Joe wonders if Ed's off the hook? But no, the good news is that they have been given visitation approval. And Joe thinks, this is good news? That he can see his brother, talk about girls, cookouts, doing his best to haul Ed's mind away from the truth? This isn't something to celebrate, its just bad news turned upside down, bad news inflated and painted to twinkle like a prize.
So much "good news" on Death Row is bad news turned upside down. But this is the only way we can keep keeping on and not giving up.
A DIFFERENCE. When Ed shares with Joe the "big news" of a last minute appeal issue, Joe sees the desperation and futility of it all. And it dawns on Joe that Ed doesn't believe he's going to die.
But what if it’s not that Ed doesn't believe he's going to die? It's him thinking that as long as he's alive he has to manufacture hope for the people who love him to cling to? That's how it was for me when my parents were alive. I had to be the strong guy, never letting them see me sweat. Somehow getting us to the finish line so whatever happens happens as quickly as possible.
The most important lesson Death Row taught me is to tell my family and friends I love love them. If you know me you know I tell you I love you. This is why. And this is why Moonrise is worthy for us to read!