You’ve Changed
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Pyae Moe Thet War has written a beautiful collection of essays about life, multiculturalism, gender, language, and mental health. She explores a wide range of topics and her writing throughout the collection is absolutely beautiful. I found myself consistently stopping to reread or just appreciate her phrasing. I increasingly appreciate writers who write in English but have a different mother tongue. We know language shapes how we think, and that’s never more obvious to me than when reading something like this. Pyae Moe Thet War would phrase things in entirely novel ways, or come at an old topic from an entirely new direction. Until I get fluent enough in any other language to read books not written in English, I just have to appreciate authors like this who are willing to share their worldview.
The writing was beautiful throughout, but one quote really stuck with me:
“I’ve always loved the thought of life being like an ocean wave, and when the wave inevitably crashes, the water returns to the sea”
I love the cyclical nature of it, allowing us to have our moment of individuality before we return to the whole. It was in an essay talking about mental health and depression, yet I found it reassuring. How nice to think that those we’ve lost over the years aren’t gone, they’ve just rejoined the universe to rest a while.
Pyae Moe Thet War covers so many different topics that I can’t imagine anyone would read the book without connecting with at least one or two. I highly recommend reading this with a buddy so that you can check in often to compare thoughts and reactions to each chapter. I read it because I accidentally checked it out from the library and the cover looked interesting, but I wish I’d waited to read it with a bookclub or friend. It would also be a great book to read on an airplane in between adventures!
Tea is one of the most popular drinks in both Myanmar and the UK, two places the author has spent most of her life. I don’t have Myanmar-caliber tea, but I did break out my best loose-leaf black tea to pair with the book. Quality demands quality, after all.
