Seen Read Heard: February 2026

Some of my latest reads, listens and watches include a social media post by David Brooks (my first time ever to share an Instagram post), George Saunders 2013 graduate speech at Syracuse University, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula (which I read with the Upper School White Whale Club; see photo of club members in their WWRC cardigans, pictured left).

Instagram Post by David Brooks
Brooks, an author of many books, a former New York Times columnist, and an essayist and podcaster for The Atlantic, is excerpted in this video (I am not sure what the larger context is or who is interviewing him), sharing his concern about colleges focusing on pre-professional work. His concern is that schools are not doing the important work of helping young people develop their character, commit to their values, and establish their internal moral and spiritual frameworks. I am proud of the important place Core Values have at FWCD. 

George Saunders Grad Speech at Syracuse (2013)
George Saunders’ Syracuse University Commencement 2013: Kindness
Saunders’ Reflections 10 Years Later

Saunders is the author of some significant and popular recent fiction, including Lincoln in the Bardo (2017). I have not read any of his books, but I came across a graduation speech he gave. I like his charge to focus on kindness. He congratulates the college graduates while suggesting their lives will be better if they are “More loving, more open,” and “Seek out anti-selfishness medicines.”  He recalls, on occasion, his own failure to be kind and the regret he carries. If you’re going to make a mistake, Saunders suggests, let it be from kindness. Ultimately, the Syracuse Undergraduate Class of 2013 heard in these 10 minutes a challenge to leave a legacy of kindness. It’s a great message to repeat often.

Dracula by Bram Stoker (1897)
Dracula references are all over movies and books, even 125 years after Bram Stoker published his novel that created so much of the storyline. The Upper School’s White Whale Reading Club chose Dracula as their first read of the 2025-26 school year and just finished their Friday discussions of the book with Senior Class Dean and Upper School English Teacher Daniel Lancaster hosting a pizza and tea party discussion. The student and faculty group discussed the portrayal of women, the development of the concept of the “undead,” and some of the variations on Stoker’s Dracula that have appeared in film and fiction over the century. Hearing the insights and banter of our students and faculty in these book discussions continues to make me happy.