Letter 2: To my dear son and brother Braulio, greetings in Christ.

To my dear son and brother Braulio, greetings in Christ. Your letter reached me and brought genuine pleasure — it is always good to hear from you, and to know that the work we began together in Seville still matters to those who were shaped by it. I must be honest with you about the Etymologiae. The work is large — larger than I had imagined when I began it, and it has a way of expanding to absorb whatever I add to it. There are sections I am satisfied with and sections that embarrass me when I read them back. I had hoped to do more revising before allowing it to circulate, and I have not yet managed to bring all the books to the standard I would wish. That said, I take your request seriously. You are not asking out of idle curiosity, and you are not a man to misuse what I send you. If the work is imperfect — and it is — it is no less imperfect for staying locked in my study. I will begin to put together what I have in a form that can travel. Be patient with me a little longer. The copying alone will take time I do not have in abundance. Your father in Christ, Isidore