This was a wonderful picture to start the morning.

The 8yo finished third at the cross-country championships this weekend. The hardest part has been finding a balance between real encouragement and not laying on pressure she can’t carry. I keep having to remind myself why I wanted her out there in the first place…..put her in situations where the pressure is real, then, no matter how it goes, throw her into the air and hug her. “Courage, dear heart.” - Aslan, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

This is incredibly beautiful. Thank you @sistersaquinas

Final big cross-country race of the season for the 8yo tomorrow in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Took her for the weekend to a nice hotel and some shopping. Thankfully the place has a cigar bench out front. Perfect for some late night reading with Artie Shaw in the background.

A late evening spent with Conrad’s Lord Jim, a cigar and a Negroni. “There is something haunting in the light of the moon; it has all the dispassionateness of a disembodied soul, and something of its inconceivable mystery.”

I’ve been working my way slowly through Book 1 of the Republic before the Ascend episodes. Unexpectedly I’m finding myself more sympathetic to Thrasymachus’ side of the frustration with Socrates than I thought I would. After years of dealing with the gap between what the rules say and how power actually moves, the constant questioning and refusal to just say what he thinks feels familiar. I’m looking forward to hear how @TheGreatB00ks handles that part.

After standing with the Bernini and then seeing La Traviata last night, what struck me was the order of Violetta’s giving and sacrifice. She leaves the life of pleasure for love, and that seemed like a conversion. Then she gives up the love itself, so a girl she will never meet can get married. The first renunciation is the one that is popular and applauded. The second is more subtle, and it costs her life. I have read that Verdi struggled with his Catholicism. Here it seems to have left its mark.

Spending some time at the @agotoronto with the Bernini before a performance of La Traviata tonight.

I went to mass before work this morning at @StMikesCathTO. A fitting day for Mr. Desronvil’s statement to be released. “I want to thank God for my Catholic faith. I want to thank God for blessing me with the ability to love my daughter.” Michael Desronvil.

“no man ever understands quite his own artful dodges to escape from the grim shadow of self-knowledge.” Lord Jim - Chapter 7

Spending my Sunday afternoon reading Conrad’s Lord Jim. I’ve found Captain Brierly’s suicide is quite devastating. He was supposed to be invincible. Most of us believe the same of ourselves. “While I thought with something akin to fear of the immensity of his contempt… he was probably holding silent inquiry into his own case.” What happens when a person who has never been tested is forced to sit in judgment on a person who has failed?

After finishing the Aeneid last night, the temptation to imbue it with Catholic sentiment is something that I fought against throughout the book. Aeneas' hesitation over killing Turnus seemed like clemency, turning the killing into some kind of fall or a judgement. I don't believe it is. Aeneas was never a hero who chose his part. Fate chose him and the killing of Turnus at the end was necessary to found a city. The bringing together of piety and fury gives one a lot to keep thinking about. What an incredible ending. @TheGreatB00ks

My narrative updates on the Aeneid to my daughter have mostly been met with the eight-year-old’s eye roll. Camilla was the exception. She listened intently when the warrior-maiden rode in at the end of Book 7…..purple on her shoulders, the horse, the crowd staring. Tonight in Book 11 she took interest again. I told her the rest: Metabus fleeing with the infant, the raging river, baby Camilla bound to his spear and thrown across. Raised in the woods. Then the death. The battle scenes held her. The afterlife did not. She was distraught that Camilla would not go to heaven, but to the same place as the rest of the dead. When I finished she asked if I would teach her to shoot a bow.

The best Sunday evening spent drinking tea while reading The Two Towers to the boy in the study.

I can’t think of a better way to put this. Thank you @armondboudreaux I try and teach the kids that God has given them unique gifts… it’s up to them to discover what they are and nurture them.

Took the kids to a @TorontoArgos game. The mascot is Jason the Argonaut. At one point the mascot was out on the field dancing. My 8-year-old daughter announces, loudly: “Dad, why is he dancing when his kids were killed by a poisoned robe!” I received a number of odd looks. Good grief.

I’ve reached Book 11 of the Aeneid. First time through. In Book 10 Aeneas cut through the Latins after Pallas fell. Now in Book 11 he stands over the boy and has to send him home to Evander. “The same black fate of war calls me from this to other griefs. I hail you now forever, great Pallas; and forever, my farewell.” The rage is over. What’s left is a father who promised to bring the son back from war. I’ve stood next to so many experiencing great grief in my own profession. This scene of grief is incredibly moving. I think this grief rivals even Dido’s death earlier in the poem.

This series from @BBHerodotus is outstanding. If you’ve read the Narnia books with your kids, his videos make for excellent viewing with them. My 11-year-old has taken to calling Lewis simply “C.S.” now. One good thing to come out of the latest Narnia movie controversy is the conversations it has started at home. The Last Battle has produced more talks about God, Jesus, and human frailty than I ever expected at this age. It has also left the boy struck by how many of the stage productions we’ve seen strip out most of the religiosity and the struggle with faith. The early previews of the film therefore come as no surprise.

I’ve been waiting for this to happen! Having the weekly Ascend articles and in depth reading guides in one place is outstanding! Between this and @Athens_Stranger ‘s Substack subscription my evenings in the study this winter just took a decidedly positive turn!

It was quite an honour to receive a Teamwork Commendation from @TPSMyronDemkiw and members of the @TPSBoard, along with my Major Case Management and Violent Crime Linkage Analysis teams. We built software that helps @TorontoPolice track and analyse serial predation offences. Most of the public will never see this work, but it has a real impact on public safety.