Notre Dame Magazine Spring 2013 : IFC

S TORIES TO S H A RE A bout a year ago I received a manuscript from Mel Livatino, a stranger to me. He said Joseph Epstein, a very ﬁne writer who had published perhaps a half-dozen essays with us, had recommended Mel send the manuscript to Notre Dame Magazine . It seemed like a Notre Dame Magazine kind of story. E DIT OR Kerry Temple ’74 M ANA GING EDIT OR Carol Schaal ’91M.A. A S SOCIA TE E DIT ORS John Nagy ’00M.A. Tara Hunt ’12 S ENIOR A L UMNI E DIT OR Liam Farrell ’04 D ESIGN & A RT D IRECTOR Kerry Prugh B USINES S M ANA GER Julia Bertini Ettl C O VER P H OTO The essay Mel sent us was about the distances that grow within families. He wrote mostly about his father and troubling relationships with his own sons. It was called “Wintry Rooms of Love,” and a few of you wrote us to say it was the best piece you’d ever read in this magazine. In our winter issue we published another Livatino essay, “Dogged by the Dark,” a meditation on God and doubt. Both stories talk honestly about pain and longing and those spiritual scaffolds that undergird the human journey. As often happens here — because of the nature of the people who write for us and the content we explore — a friendship developed between writer and editor. In fact, some of my closest friends are people I know almost entirely through their writing and our correspondence. Mel Livatino has also heard from readers, and he has commented to me about what a thoughtful, intelligent, sensitive readership we have. I joked that I’ve also heard through the years from other types of readers. But I also concurred and noted that one of the great gratifications of this job is putting our readers in touch with the writers who con-tribute to this magazine. Very good things happen in these transactions. I do think there is “a Notre Dame Magazine kind of story,” although I’ve never been able to define it — and people do ask. Such stories reflect the institution, though, and carry the values, explorations and truths of the place. They speak of Notre Dame and the kinds of conversations that happen here. People seeking and people sharing. One of the aspects I most like is that those who write for us come here because they have something to say, and it doesn’t matter if they are prestigious authors or have nev-er written before. The magazine provides a place for them to tell their stories, to open up, to explain, illuminate or question. I chose this line of work for several reasons, but one of the most meaningful to me was that act of sharing, of trying to make sense of something and taking that examina-tion to readers who might find resonant chords in their own lives. We do this in print four times a year, and we’re growing our website with personal es-says and other life stories. We invite you not only to look there but also to add your own voice. The standards are a little different than you’d find with a print quarterly. But the sharing among writers, editors and readers can be every bit as meaningful. — Kerry Temple ’74 Matt Cashore ’94 C ONTENT S PA G E P H OTO Matt Cashore ’94 Notre Dame Magazine (ISSN 0161-987X) is published four times yearly in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter by the University of Notre Dame for its alumni and friends. The magazine’s address is 500 Grace Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556-5612 ndmag@nd.edu magazine.nd.edu Copyright 2013 by the University of Notre Dame. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited. Periodicals postage paid at Notre Dame, IN 46556 and at additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send change of address to Notre Dame Magazine , 500 Grace Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556-5612. Subscriptions: $30 one year, $45 two years Telephone: 574-631-5335, Fax: 6767 Other University phone numbers: Directory Assistance: 574-631-5000 Undergraduate Admissions: 574-631-7505 Alumni Association Office: 574-631-6000 Office of the Registrar: 574-631-7043 Athletic Department: 574-631-6107 Ticket Office: 574-631-7356

STORIES TO SHARE

Kerry Temple

About a year ago I received a manuscript from Mel Livatino, a stranger to me. He said Joseph Epstein, a very fine writer who had published perhaps a half-dozen essays with us, had recommended Mel send the manuscript to Notre Dame Magazine. It seemed like a Notre Dame Magazine kind of story. The essay Mel sent us was about the distances that grow within families. He wrote mostly about his father and troubling relationships with his own sons. It was called “Wintry Rooms of Love,” and a few of you wrote us to say it was the best piece you’d ever read in this magazine. In our winter issue we published another Livatino essay, “Dogged by the Dark,” a meditation on God and doubt. Both stories talk honestly about pain and longing and those spiritual scaffolds that undergird the human journey. As often happens here — because of the nature of the people who write for us and the content we explore — a friendship developed between writer and editor. In fact, some of my closest friends are people I know almost entirely through their writing and our correspondence. Mel Livatino has also heard from readers, and he has commented to me about what a thoughtful, intelligent, sensitive readership we have. I joked that I’ve also heard through the years from other types of readers. But I also concurred and noted that one of the great gratifications of this job is putting our readers in touch with the writers who contribute to this magazine. Very good things happen in these transactions. I do think there is “a Notre Dame Magazine kind of story,” although I’ve never been able to define it — and people do ask. Such stories reflect the institution, though, and carry the values, explorations and truths of the place. They speak of Notre Dame and the kinds of conversations that happen here. People seeking and people sharing. One of the aspects I most like is that those who write for us come here because they have something to say, and it doesn’t matter if they are prestigious authors or have never written before. The magazine provides a place for them to tell their stories, to open up, to explain, illuminate or question. I chose this line of work for several reasons, but one of the most meaningful to me was that act of sharing, of trying to make sense of something and taking that examination to readers who might find resonant chords in their own lives. We do this in print four times a year, and we’re growing our website with personal essays and other life stories. We invite you not only to look there but also to add your own voice. The standards are a little different than you’d find with a print quarterly. But the sharing among writers, editors and readers can be every bit as meaningful.

Sustainable Forestry Initiative

URL: http://www.sfiprogram.org

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