The Book of Delights

In the preface, Gay shares that he decided to write about one delight per day, starting on his birthday, August 1. He chose to write each delight by hand and make it a personal practice. Over the year, he saw common themes emerge, like travel, racism, his mother, gardening, politics, books, dreams, public spaces, and more. He also found that the more he wrote about delight, the more delights he found, almost as if he built a “delight muscle” that grew when he exercised it. his life did not contain any less sadness or grief, but significantly more joy, which grew even more when he shared it.

In this first entry, Gay reflects on the miracle of his birth and how incredible it was that his white mother and Black father ended up on the island of Guam. Though Gay spent many years ignoring his birthday, this year he turns 42 and decides to wear bright colors and floral patterns, even down to his underwear. He rebels against the stereotypes he was taught about men wearing bright colors and patterns and decides to bedeck himself in whatever he likes.

He also records as many delights as he finds on his first day of recording delights.