The Inexplicable Logic of My Life: Part Four–Epilogue

by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Sal has always felt at home with his adoptive father, his beloved grandmother, and his best friend, Samantha. But as his senior year progresses, Sal struggles with volatile anger, unexpected tragedy, and changing relationships with friends and family.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Prologue–Part One, Parts Two–Three, Part Four–Epilogue
35 words 82 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. emphysema
    a condition of decreased respiratory function of the lungs
    “Yeah, you smoke them and they give you cancer.”
    “And emphysema.”
    “And heart disease.”
  2. naivete
    lack of sophistication or worldliness
    “Sally, do you always have to interpret reality with the naiveté of a ten-year-old? Really?”
  3. inexplicable
    incapable of being explained or accounted for
    I was starting to believe that the human heart had an inexplicable logic.
  4. pensive
    deeply or seriously thoughtful
    It’s like sometimes you’re the same old Sally, and then you get into these pensive moods and you don’t want to talk, and then all of a sudden you’re mad at the world.
  5. abate
    become less in amount or intensity
    The hangover was nothing more than a memory, and the sadness over Mima’s visit seemed to have abated.
  6. pragmatic
    concerned with practical matters
    “I’m just pragmatic. That guy should be good for something.”
    I smiled. “Pragmatic. Remember you spelled that word in the spelling bee?”
  7. smug
    marked by excessive complacency or self-satisfaction
    “You look smug,” she said.
    “I don’t do smug.”
    “Oh yeah, you’re all about smug right now. You think you wrote a really outta-this-world cool poem, don’t you?”
  8. fruitful
    productive or conducive to producing in abundance
    The discussion was so not fruitful.
  9. averse
    strongly opposed
    Risk averse. That’s what Sam said I was. It was a nice way of saying I was afraid of trying new things.
  10. credentials
    a document attesting to the truth of certain stated facts
    What was up with me anyway? I needed to stop analyzing myself. I didn’t have the credentials to be my own therapist.
  11. relish
    derive or receive pleasure from
    “Because it’s not specific. There’s no detail. If you don’t get to relish in Fito’s tragedy—if you can’t do that—it’s no fun.”
    “I don’t do relish,” Sam said.
  12. nostalgia
    a longing for something past
    My Uncle Julian was the oldest. My dad was the youngest, and there was that big age spread. Yet they were so close. Dad was wearing one of those nostalgia smiles.
  13. malaise
    a feeling of mild sickness or depression
    During lunch I went outside to get some air. I needed to breathe. Malaise. That’s what I was feeling. Malaise.
  14. articulate
    characterized by clear expressive language
    “‘Oh.’ That’s what you have to say? That’s articulate.”
  15. inconsistent
    displaying a lack of regularity
    “I don’t get you lately. You used to be really sweet.”
    “Maybe I wasn’t.”
    “Yes, you were. But now you’re so inconsistent.”
  16. sordid
    morally degraded
    “Wow,” Sam said. “So what happened?” She always wanted to know the sordid details.
  17. perverse
    marked by a disposition to oppose and contradict
    I just looked at her and said, “Sam, sometimes you’re not a very nice person.”
    “I’m not the one who’s sick.”
    “Perverse. You’re perverse.”
  18. erudite
    having or showing profound knowledge
    “I like it when you exhibit your erudite vocabulary.”
  19. lethargy
    inactivity; showing an unusual lack of energy
    Before Sam left, I was lying in bed, and she texted me: Wftd=lethargy.
    Me: Yup. Emotional lethargy.
  20. compelling
    tending to persuade by forcefulness of argument
    And apart from the fact that I seemed to be going through a phase that was confusing the hell out of me—which was at least interesting—I didn’t think I had a particularly compelling reason why any expensive university should accept me.
  21. ambivalent
    uncertain or unable to decide about what course to follow
    Maybe I was ambivalent about college. Ambivalent. A Sam word. Yeah, I was ambivalent.
  22. stasis
    inactivity resulting from a balance between opposing forces
    Sam texted me: Wftd=stasis.
    Me: Stasis?
    Sam: As in not moving.
  23. compensate
    adjust for
    "...You’re just compensating. You should start running with us. It’s called sublimation.”
  24. sublimation
    making the expression of an impulse socially acceptable
    "...You’re just compensating. You should start running with us. It’s called sublimation.”
  25. transcend
    go beyond the scope or limits of
    “I’m not sure. I believe there’s a God. I believe there is something greater, a force that transcends this thing we call living. I don’t know if that answers your question.”
  26. spiel
    artful or slick talk used to persuade
    So we all went inside, and Lina started making tortillas, and Sam was giving Fito her spiel about the five stages.
  27. expendable
    suitable to be used up
    “...we have expendable incomes.”
  28. relentless
    not willing or able to stop or yield
    Sam was relentless and fierce. “That ship sailed a long time ago, Fito. That was never gonna happen.”
  29. fleeting
    lasting for a markedly brief time
    “Really? You’d slap her silly?”
    “Well, no. But can’t I just enjoy the fleeting thought?”
  30. vista
    the visual percept of a region
    When we reached the top of the mountain, the wind was cold, but I didn’t mind. It was strange and beautiful, and I felt so alive. We looked across the gorgeous vista, and it wasn’t hard for me to believe in God at that moment.
  31. votive
    dedicated in fulfillment of a vow
    We placed a hundred and fifty luminarias all around Mima’s house and put a votive candle in the center of each bag.
  32. eulogy
    a formal expression of praise for someone who has died
    He wrote her obituary for the newspaper. He wrote her eulogy.
  33. ebb
    the outward flow of the tide
    I’m watching the waves hit the sand, the ebb and flow of the waves crashing against the distant cliffs.
  34. salvation
    a means of preserving from harm or unpleasantness
    But you were my salvation, Salvador. You were.
  35. certitude
    complete assurance or confidence
    I finally understood something about life and its inexplicable logic. I’d wanted to be certain of everything, and life was never going to give me any certitude.
Created on Sun Nov 10 16:29:09 EST 2019 (updated Tue Nov 12 14:10:55 EST 2019)

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