But December, if you choose, if you allow it, can be the trail through the woods that leads to the light, far off in the distance.
The darkness itself offers the gift. Each day, the darkness comes sooner, comes deeper, comes blacker than ink. It draws us in, into our homes, yes, but more so, into our souls.
It invites us: Light a light. Wrap a blanket. Sit by the fire. Stare into the flames, and onto the last dying embers. Consider the coming of Christmas.
Barbara Mahany
Slowing Time, p. 179
For she had learned to really pray. For the first time in her life she had discovered prayer to be not what it had hitherto been to her “the occupation of the praying mind or the sound of the voice praying,” but a ceaseless offering up of the whole personality, of every thought and word and action, as sacrifice.
Elizabeth Goudge
The Pilgrim’s Inn, p. 43
Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness comes sooner upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.
While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light…
I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
Love 💕 occasionally reading quickly through the Gospels in KJV…
I jumped on the shovel edge in my daughter’s pastel rainbow crocs. I found myself falling backwards, feet up and over, crocs, scattering. I burst out laughing, after mentally checking my ache-y, forty-something self for injury. I sure hope nobody I know saw me in the front yard of my parent’s home. 🤪😏👀 I planted the bulbs with my five year old as he stared at me with wonder. “Ok, ok, kid,” I thought, “it’s pretty unusual to see your mother shoveling and sweating, not to mention falling over.” Ha. 😂
We just finished this as a read aloud. We all adored it! 🕯️🪔🕯️
I’ve been thinking about Jesus’ parable of the sower {Matthew 13:1-9} in relation to being a mother. Could it be that the enrichment of their soul earth is our primary, creative work? Our magnum opus? It’s sweaty, unseen, thankless soul-shoveling work. We add manure, pull out weeds, we prepare the soil with truth, beauty, and rich, good things. Why? By faith, slowly, we trust that eventually it will be ready to receive the seed of God’s Word.
My daughter made bread and I used up leftover rice for chicken, veggie, rice soup… 🥣 ♥️
Weaving in and out of this preparation, we grow in our gardening skills ourselves. We limp around on our bruised backsides 😏, callused palms smarting, and keep strewing bits of life and light. We stretch and use all the God has given us. RM’s song “Wildflower” stuck with me deeply after it was first released. He is speaking on his creativity journey, but the idea of growing a lasting, perennial ‘flowerwork’ instead of an instantaneously burnt out flaming firework. The bright and flashy is gone in a second. Long, lasting work takes a kind of death and humilty. Once the seed is tucked into the earth, it’s a work of long trust and patience. Motherhood and our creative work both need this mustard-seed faith and fallow season.
“Flower field, that’s where I’m at
Open land that’s where I’m at
No name, that’s what I have
No shame, I’m on my grave.”
~RM, English translation, Genius.com
The character Isobel in the YA fantasy, An Enchantment of Ravens, found out through her painting, the stark emptiness and abject horror of immortality. It’s not glamorous to work, live, grow old, and die while serving, creating, and loving, but it’s human. The created of a Creator creates. That makes it enough. It’s prayer and worship. Thankfulness by fullness of being. So much around us is so empty and vacuous. Without true meaning. A life of meaning means toil, back breaking, long-haul work with faith.
“I ask where you could be right now
Where you go, where’s your soul
Yo, where’s your dream?”
~ RM
Four years of reading journals! Blue sparrow one is my new one… ♥️♥️♥️I left Goodreads and have loved this tactile way of creatively engaging with my reading.
So, where do our dreams go? They are still right here. Transformed into something human AND Spirit-powered. They may change form, a weaving in and out all that we are doing. Seasons of our servanthood with the gifts we’ve been given promise new morning mercies. Just as I can surely count on the perennial return of my mom’s tulips and daffodils, I can trust this slow, quiet blooming process is working in my children and in me, too. Thanks be to God.
Sweet, dirty little feet…💕💕💕
How about you? How do you view relationships and creativity? How are you cultivating a culture of creative work while maintaining closeness and connections to your faith, family, and friends? I’d love to hear any thoughts! I’m still trying to flesh out what this all means…
Do you find yourself returning to old favorites and habits in times of stress and upheaval? Sometimes, for me, this isn’t a good thing, because I have to work very hard to make good choices in a few areas where I’m prone to excess. However, books, music, and nature or domestic detail photography all have their place in a kind of “on-the-spot therapy” for me. I am definitely a rereader especially if a book encapsulates a certain ‘feeling’ I’m after or setting I love.
Poetry that I return to again and again!Wild, windy days and whipping yellow
I recently pulled off my shelf a favorite reread series that’s so interesting that I got immediately sucked in all over again. I was reminded how much I love rereading, because so much more can be caught and different things highlighted. The Mirror Visitor Series isn’t perfect, but it has so many interesting characters and so many ideas to think on, I just love it. I was again reminded that it’s not always good for me to rush reading or be trying to keep up with all the new stuff. One big downside to Bookstagram and Booktube. Poetry, too, is something I absolutely have favorites of, I’m so rewarded and surprised as I cracked open the pages and take a deep drink all over again.
I don’t own a PB copy of the last book, The Stormof Echoes yet, can’t wait to collect it for the gorgeous cover alone. My favorites are the first two, by far, but they are all so immersive. Josh Garrels oldie, but goodie
I’m very eclectic in my reading, listening, and watching tastes. I like quirky, kind of off-the-beaten-track things with a side of classic. I’ve noticed a shift lately back to my old Josh Garrels listening, instrumental BTS (my one and ever only K-pop fandom), a craving for films like Sound of Music, Howl’s Moving Castle, and Babette’s Feast. I watched a few episodes of Over the Garden Wall with my kids the other day. It’s a bit toooo creepy for us, but some of it is interesting and has such a gorgeous atmosphere. How about you? What do you gravitate towards when life is feeling weighty?
Two reread favorites 🥹♥️Tree gazing and listening to…what are they whispering? Hello light, my old friend.
How ‘bout you? What are some healthy ways you refresh yourself? Do you need something new and different? Or do you return to your comfortable, hole-y sweater of inspiration? It goes without saying, that the Holy Bible is super comforting to me because it shows that there is nothing new under the sun. We are all so flawed. I need deep gulps of Jesus.♥️ I definitely occasionally need a ‘Tookish’ adventure to get me out of a funk, but generally, returning to my old Baggins favorites and home comforts blesses me immensely. What richness we’ve been given! ☺️♥️🕸️🕷️🌿🍂🍁🍄🌾
We’ve been enjoying Josh Garrels ‘Rise’ and Andrew Peterson’s ‘Sowers Song’ together as a family. Our homeschool hymn and folk song are current favorites, too!
Reading…
I’m deep into my Victorian selections which I’ve been talking about a lot, 🤣 but I have plenty of light things to try/reread in between my tomes! Have you read any of this stack? 🤓🤓🤓
Watching…
I’m so enjoying Chantel’s beautiful lifestyle vlogs, especially her reflections on life and nature footage. I’m also so excited to continue watching this channel and I got via Kindle her debut novel!
Noticing…
I absolutely love driving down the road with leaves falling on my van and then glancing into the rear view mirror for the swirl up and around of the leaves as we drive through them. Sigh. 😌 🍁🍂🍃 We have gone on a few nature rambles and plan on a couple of more soon with friends.
How about you? What are you listening to, reading, watching, and noticing? 🖤🍂🍁🍃💀👀♥️🍄🌕
“The Spirit of the LORD spoke through me, his word was on my tongue.”
King David, from 2 Samuel 23:2
Hello, Friends! ♥️☕️🌻I realize I’ve been a bit scarce as we dive into our new home educating year, I hope to get back to my 180 Day Project soon. Here’s a few shots from our week…
How was your week? Ours was good, albeit looong! 😁♥️☕️🌻🌿
The smell coming out of our public library was intoxicating! 😍♥️
I really enjoy this app and that they make Saturday a time of spiritual reflection over the past week. ♥️🙏🏻 I highly recommend listening (you can listen on their website, too!)
I jotted down their questions this week and found it so refreshing and challenging to honestly pray through them. It’s sobering to deeply examine oneself in the light of our Lord!
Does the LORD take pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the LORD?
Look: to obey is better than sacrifice, to pay attention is better than the fat of rams.
The LORD then said to me, ‘You’ve been traveling around this hill country long enough; turn north…
For the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this immense wilderness. The LORD your God has been with you these past forty years, and you have lacked nothing.’
A.M. Pine - Hearth Ridge Reflections 