Nampa, Idaho - June 9, 2026 - “Gripping discomfort.” That’s how I described how I felt 10 years ago while watching a community theater’s adaptation of Elizabeth Taylor’s and Richard Burton’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966). It’s the same two-word description I’d offer if asked how I felt while reading John Updike’s Rabbit, Run (1960). Here lies a tragic story in which the Pulitzer Prize-winning author masterfully reveals what calamity awaits those who succumb to mainstream indoctrination, tradition, and the expectations of others rather than follow one’s inner compass.
The story follows Harry Angstrom, a young family man, who, on a whim, recklessly decides to turn his life upside down in hopes of easing the inner turmoil of not knowing who he is or what he wants. In the process, he burdens those around him with his struggle between self and society, the pursuit of pleasure and family duty, and even between callousness and empathy. Harry wants more out of life than the humdrum existence he shares with Janice and their two-year-old son, Nelson. His natural inclination is to run away, but he soon learns that he hasn’t a destination, both literally and figuratively.
Prior to reading Rabbit, Run, I imagined my life would’ve been better had I never left my hometown. I could see myself working just up the road, mowing the lawn on Saturdays, attending church on Sundays, and raising a family with a girl I went to high school with—all to the tune of Carly Simon’s “That’s the Way I Always Heard It Should Be” (1971). But then again, I might’ve ended up exactly like Harry—living in quiet desperation, pining for the life I was supposed to have while destroying the lives of everyone around me.
-Chuck Trunks
“This work was written independently by the author without the use of generative AI.”
Trunks Art moved from Columbia, South Carolina, to Nampa, Idaho, in 2025 and has made this city his home and writing inspiration.
To see more of my work, please have a look at more posts or email me at chucktrunks@gmail.com. Or, visit my website at www.trunksart.com. Also, you can find me on Instagram (chucktrunks) and Facebook (Chuck Trunks).
