The Bonfire Sessions: Second Autumn

By Matthew J Distefano and Michael Machuga

The Bonfire Sessions: Second Autumn is a thought-provoking booklet that: explores some of the differences between liberals and conservatives, how keeping friends as you get older becomes more and more challenging, why a sanitary life is a dead and boring life, and how J.R.R. Tolkien has shaped both of us in such major ways.

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• Language: English
• Publisher: Quoir
• Release date: Oct 20, 2022
• ISBN: 9781957007298

Matthew J Distefano

Matthew J. Distefano is a regular contributor for The Raven Foundation. He is an outspoken advocate for global peace and non-violence. Matthew is married with one daughter and enjoys the great outdoors.

Book preview

Table of Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

SECOND AUTUMN

Twilight

Dusk

Midnight

Preface

When we first set out to write these Bonfire Sessions, we didn’t plan on putting together a sequel, let alone a trilogy. Then we woke our asses up and thought, How could we not? If Tolkien’s greatest literary work—arguably the world’s greatest literary work of all time—was a trilogy,¹ it obviously makes sense to follow suit. Taking the analogy further, that means that our first book, A Journey with Two Mystics, is The Hobbit.

I’m digging the symbolism.

If you aren’t yet familiar with what we are doing in these sessions, then take a moment to pour a drink, fill your pipe, and get settled in, because it’s going to be an interesting ride. And we don’t mean that in a completely self-deprecating way. We really hope our conversations are interesting, if nothing else.

You see, that’s what we do around the bonfire. We chat. We drink. We smoke. And then we chat, drink, and smoke some more. Then we put some of the thoughts down on paper so that you can experience the shenanigans.

What do we chat about? Anything. Everything. There is no outline, no plan. We don’t have seven key points that we make sure to cover. We just trust our decade-long friendship, plug our noses a bit, and dive in. What comes out on the pages will be anyone’s guess, but thus far we think it’s been fairly commendable, if not out and out brilliant.

In our first four-part anthology, we pretty much covered everything: Trump, God, Trump as God, God as Trump. Sprinkled in were some cuss words. Once in a while, we told a joke that would actually land. In these current sessions, however, while the cussing and joking will continue, there will be less Trump talk. Some Trump talk, but less Trump talk. Each of us are thankful for the reason why, but do miss it a bit.

Only a bit, though.

Now, it should be stated that we aren’t here to change anyone’s mind about matters of politics, philosophy, or theology. Hell, we aren’t even here to change each other’s minds. That’s not what good conversations are all about, nor is it what constitutes good friendship. Instead, we are simply having a chat, and hoping that in its tone and content, it models what is meant by a good conversation. In this day and age, we both believe that a project like this is needed more than ever.

So, if you haven’t done so yet, go ahead and make a cocktail, grab a cigar or your favorite pipe, find a comfy seat, and cozy up near the fire. We’re happy you are here, and hope you enjoy your stay. Just remember