Thank You for Letting Us Know How We're Doing!

Our readers have provided us with a treasure trove of candid information.

Students of German romanticism may be familiar with the “Parsifal Question”—that is, the riddle of what question a knight named Parsifal (or Percival) must ask in order to heal the wounded Fisher King and restore his kingdom.

In Wolfram von Eschenbach's telling, Parsifal is a simple man whose has no desire to be clever or to seem learned—only to understand the problem. And so, he simply asks, "What ails you, Uncle?" The question that expresses genuine interest and compassion is what heals the Fisher King.

Underlying the story is the recognition that we often go through life making all kinds of assumptions about people, what they are going through, and what they want—instead of simply asking them.

In my post of yesterday, Please Let Us Know How We Are Doing, I seemed to have asked something akin to the Parsifal Question, and our readers have responded with a treasure trove of candid information. I will carefully review all of it, be mindful of all the constructive criticism, and write posts that address your requests.

Special thanks to our readers who responded to the post by purchasing paid subscriptions. We are very grateful for your support!

Best regards,

John Leake