The Holy Spirit has descended on this old world of ours, and there’s a Psalm 29 powwow in Elmo (Montana) every day of the year: a grace-revealing gesture, a fresh snowfall, a friend’s forgiveness, the first migrating yellow warbler, a miracle conversion, a truth-telling poem, a pasqueflower in bloom, the good death of a parent, resurrection – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-all the endless permutations of life. The beauty of holiness. And we have ringside seats. Henry James once said that a writer is a person on whom nothing is ever lost. That sounds like a focused Christian identity to me: the men and women on whom nothing, at least nothing that has to do with life-and virtually everything does-is lost. “Worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.”
Amen.
~Eugene H. Peterson, As Kingfishers Catch Fire , note mine in parenthesis
Click in to read a little boy’s thoughts on jam! 😂♥️🥰😍
Happiest First Day of Summer and Father’s Day! I’m over here at Hearth Ridge enjoying family, sunshine, flowers, and an Anne of Avonlea reread. Church and feasting, too! God is good! ✨
I’ve enjoyed Jessica’s blog for awhile now and I saw she was joining in a bookish blog hop about our 2026 reading! I used to blog hop a lot and really enjoyed linking up with others over a common topic. 😍 I’m joining her at Words & Peace for this reading meme reflecting about your first six months of reading.
Instructions from Emma at Words & Peace:
In 2021, Jo at The Book Jotter started hosting the meme Six in Six. She stopped blogging in 2025, so I have decided to host it myself.
What is 6 in 6?
The idea is to look back at the books you have read so far in the six months of this year. Now, I love plays with numbers, so I’m extending this meme: you can post any time in July, or as early as 6/6, June 6th.
What do you post?
Choose 6 books in 6 categories. You can come up with your own category, or choose among the following examples (copied from Jo’s blog):
Six new authors to me
Six authors I have read before
Six authors I am looking forward to reading more of
Six books I have enjoyed the most
Six books I was disappointed with
Six series of books read or started
Six authors I read last year – but not so far this year
Six books that took me on extraordinary journeys
Six books that took me by the hand and led me into the past
Six books from the past that drew me back there
Six books from authors I know will never let me down
Six books I must mention that don’t fit nicely into any category
Six books I started in the first six months of the year and was still caught up with in July
Six trips to Europe
Six blogging events I enjoyed
Six bookish things I’m looking forward to
Six Espionage or Historical Novels I enjoyed
Six Cool Classics
Six Non-US/Non-British Authors
Six From the Non-Fiction Shelf
Six books that didn’t live up to expectations
Six books that I had one or two problems with but am still glad I tried
Six books that are related to The Great War or Second World War
Six bookshops I have visited
Six books I’ve read in an English translation
Six books which are better than the film
Six books which are worse than the film
Six books that have sport as their major theme
Six favourite places to read
Six books read on kindle and then went and bought an actual copy
Six books I abandoned
Six classics I have read
Six books I have read on my Kindle
Six physical books I have read
Six book covers I love
Six book covers that bear no resemblance to the story contained within
Six books to read to avoid politics
Six books I have read but not reviewed
Six books I have read in lockdown
Six classic mysteries
Six books about Royalty
Six pretty book covers
Six books set in a country other than my own
Six books that feature a Pandemic
Six books that are great when self-isolating
Six books recently added to my wish list
Six mysteries, thrillers or crime novels NOT by Agatha Christie
Six books with titles connected to rivers, seas and storms
Six nature related books
Six books about Librarians and Libraries
Six books I really want to buy in the next six months
Six books that feature a building in the title
My categories I’ve chosen to share about are:
Six favorite genres so far
Six favorite reads so far in 2026
Six favorite Booktube Readathons
Six New-to-Me Authors
Six Mysteries I loved
Six Books I Read from My Shelf
My Six Favorite Genres: (many are a mixture of these below! I’m such an eclectic reader!)
Fairytale/Classic Retellings
Fantasy
Historical Fiction
Mystery
Young Adult
Middle Grade
My Six Favorite Reads so far 2026 (so hard to choose!)
The Secret of Honeycake by Kimberly Newton Fusco (beautiful, heartwarming Middle Grade)
The Robe by Lloyd C. Douglas (gorgeous, Biblical Historical Fiction)
The Will of Many by James Islington (wonderful epic Historical Fantasy)
Through Rushing Waters by Catherine Richmond (Heartbreaking Historical Fiction)
Mistress Pat by L.M. Montgomery (beautifully written classic)
Dawn of Wonder by Jonathan Renshaw (classic fantasy story of an underdog!)
My Six Favorite Booktube Readathons So Far this Year: (You can still join these! I don’t follow the monthly prompts, I just fill them in as I go!)
Starting a bit of a June challenge for myself! June is my birthday month so I want to gift myself health, beauty, relationships, and simple routines. I’m putting this here for additional accountability and encouragement! It’s never too late to start again.
Idlewild season {the name of my deck garden😅} is officially started! I read my Bible with my coffee out there this morning. 😍 Bliss! Have some seeds planted in those big tubs, too! ❣️ We also have four tomato plants and a fern.
I was hoping to plant a huge patch of sunflowers, zinnias, and cosmos, but it may not happen with wedding planning and remodeling. It’s so lovely to have this bit of cheer to enjoy. Grateful. ☺️
I had so much fun 🤩 setting up my June reading pages and I’m looking forward to filling the pages with mini reviews and book covers from my reading. It was nice to sit and just rest in a teeny bit of creativity!
How are you!? Have you been creating anything or reading/watching anything great? 💜
Last week taking down my shelves… we hired our oldest son to do the bulk of the work. Phase 1 – demolition, insulation, electrical, drywall, ceiling, recessed lighting, new sliding door (for future deck) and a few windows. Last of this phase is floor and trim. 😎🫣 Pray for us. 😂
A few simple things to aim for this spring/summer! Prayerfully asking the Lord to help me focus on relationships and rightly ordering my affections. Do you have anything planned or something on your heart? ♥️ Journaling brings me so much joy! 🥹♥️🥰
Happy Thursday! I ‘tried’ to group these by main genre topic. ♥️ I’m hoping to add more for reference! A few of these don’t regularly update, but there is a TREASURE TROVE of back posts!
A.M. Pine - Hearth Ridge Reflections 