According to the calendar and the world's most enthusiastic weatherman, spring has officially arrived. That being said, the rule of thumb around here is not to get one's hopes up -- or the summer clothes out of storage -- until Tax Day, because to do otherwise is to ask the universe to openly mock you with a giant snowstorm.
Even so, Spring Break starts next week, which means that I can indulge my most sacred Spring Break tradition, dating back to...oh...I don't even know when. Junior or senior year of college, certainly. Every year, I reread Pride and Prejudice, then watch the BBC/Jennifer Ehle movie. Some years, I read critical essays about Austen as well, and I usually slip in another of Jane's books (Never Emma. LOATHE Emma.), but in essentials, my date with the Bennets is very much as it ever was.
The amazing thing about this novel is that even after a decade of rereading it on at least a yearly basis, it always feels fresh. Austen's observations ring absolutely true, more than two hundred years after P&P was written. My dear friend Marilyn and I have found that just about any situation or person can be summed up with an Austen quote, and we have whiled away many car rides doing exactly that. I can endure the more annoying people in my life with some degree of equanimity when I imagine which Austen characters they most resemble, and what Elizabeth Bennet would say about them. It is a toss-up as to which I enjoy more -- Austen's observations or her heroines, particularly Elizabeth.
Even the girls know it's coming. Isabelle has asked if she can watch the movie with me. She also wants to know if I'll be eating dark chocolate as I do so. The answer to both is yes, of course. I am telling myself that her interest has more to do with an appreciation for classic literature and quality cinamatography than a burning desire to get into my stash of good chocolate, but that stretches even my capacity for self-delusion.
It's tempting to crack open the book right now, but I am trying to hold firm. There are projects I NEED to finish this week, and chores, so that over Spring Break I can tackle a ridiculously long list of home improvements (more on that later). Jane and Lizzy will be my reward.
