Sometimes Often I read an essay and I wish I had written it.
The latest example is written by Alex McElroy — and not by me, damn it — in last week’s edition of The New York Times Magazine: “Why Holding a Grudge Is So Satisfying.”
A grudge is not a resentment. Sure, they’re made of the same material — poison — but while resentment is concentrated, a grudge is watered down, drinkable and refreshingly effervescent, the low-calorie lager to resentment’s bootleg grain alcohol.
Effervescent is the perfect word to describe McElroy’s writing, and I agree with every word they wrote. Especially this:
Did someone truly, existentially wrong you? Don’t waste your time growing a grudge — save it for something pettier.
So I guess it’s not appropriate to hold a grudge against someone I’ve never met over something as existential-adjacent as them being a more gifted writer than I?
Or maybe it is.
Mike McClary 