Speaking of vacation, John Gruber wrote a engaging piece of his experience with his little kid.
I first came across Daring Fireball about three years back, when I just got started in the world of Apple product. Daring Fireball seems like one of “those” sites – posts that link to other sites with a short commentary by the site owner.
I always skimmed through the news in my RSS reader, mainly because of the high influx of news count and the desire to move across them quickly. It’s a fast and efficient way of getting my daily dose of Apple and major technology related news.
In Dubai, the slow and unstable connection in our apartment really got on my nerves. I was holding onto my phone, aimlessly swiping across the different homescreen. Then, I unintentionally tapped on Instapaper and that was the moment when I was reminded of the long list of articles yet to be read. I browsed through them, and sitting among the pile was the article by Daring Fireball, titled Vacation, All I Ever Wanted. I was surprised it’s a long-form article. Since I have time to spare and energy to burn, I decided to consume the words, and story.
It’s a story about his little boy, his partner and himself on a holiday trip. How interesting can a personal encounter like this turned out, especially to someone like me who has yet settled down and have no experience with children? But it turned out to be one of the best stories I have read in recent memory. It’s thoroughly personal, as though I was in the living room with John Gruber across me with a cup of coffee narrating the entire event. It felt real. I can feel the wave of emotions he’s had, and I felt myself wanting to know more.
I can feel myself in his position, to protect my little one. I was rooting for John to do something about it, to get the bully in line and to serve justice for his boy. In our hearts, we just want to provide the best for our loved ones and imagine the frustrations, the anger and disappointment if we are forcefully denied.
I just want to read on, to find out. It’s a simple piece of story but it’s so personal and relatable to me. It reminds me of an advice I came across – writing is about being honest and real.