I'm new here.

I've been trying to find the words to explain why Ray Bradbury's works mean so much to me, but I can't.

All I can say is that Dandelion Wine was one of the first works of his that I read, and I instantly felt this connection to his work. One can say maybe like Bill and Helen's connection, which has always been one of my favourite moments in any of his works.

As I looked into his stories more, I realized that I had read The Pedestrian and There Will Come Soft Rains before. It explained why those works had resonated with me as much as they did.

All I can say to you all here is that I am SO grateful that there is an active community to whom I can express these things.

The closest I can get to expressing what Bradbury's work does for me is this:

"There's this breathlessness...
Knowing that something was powerful enough to take some small part of me, and yet give back more than it took.
It's bittersweet, really. It's an ache I want to have."

"Finding the Words." I so get that.
Welcome Autienne!

Indeed! Mr. Bradbury's words stay with us forever. They leave a mark on one's psyche. Then, when you least expect it, they return in a flash of images or exchanges or feelings that need no explanation. Rather, they are instantly recognized - as if the words were being read once again.

As for DW: Several summers ago, our two boys (then quite young) came running along the side of a school gymnasium in which I had volunteered to do some painting. They came padding onto the sidewalk and hurried into the entrance way. The simple moment of two youths, sneakers smacking the ground, all in a rush, suddenly entering where I was working caused me to exclaim aloud, "The Sound of Summer Running!"

And then, there they were! All red-faced, staring at me on the ladder, their laughter echoing up to the rafters overhead. A true "Bradbury Moment!"