Nothing less than the Infinite will satisfy the spirit of a man…
Charlotte Mason, School Education, p.9
Monday Ponderings {April 3rd}
Category: Seasons
Monday Ponderings {March 20th}
What truth do I preach better than I practice?
Oswald Chambers
Monday Ponderings {March 13th}
Scholars read the great words of the world. But you and I must learn to read the world itself.
Linda Sue Park, A Single Shard , p. 7
Monday Ponderings {March 6}
…Lord of my merry cheers,
My grey that turns to gold,
And my most private tears
And comforts manifold,
‘Tis wonderful to me
That I am loved by Thee.
excerpt from “Brooding Blue” by Amy Carmichael
||nourishing newness||
release your hold,
your icy grip off of
Saint Valentine’s wrist,
Janus, you selfish giant you,
you two-faced, greedy,
grasper, holding at
arms length from us
your children, the hint
of green, your snowy
finger still extending
over the land, but your
days are numbered
white witch melt
warmth will rule
once more
A.M. Pine, originally for Peace Poem Project 2023. Drawing from this well.
||living loved||
I cracked the Montana mug
I lost the swallow earring
flea market finds from my man
is this all marriage is
feeling cracked & lost?
but that’s how hope crawls in
through the cracks & crevices
in small corner light is found
loneliness is lumped & kneaded out
not unlike what that
potter did with the clay
back in Montana
turning something
rough into a little something
different one day
the beader who set
my earring soaring
didn’t see a marriage
celebrated as her
dangling art pierced through
my earlobe
the cracked & loss
a little more whole
A.M. Pine, originally written for Peace Poem Project 2023
-drawing from this well ♥️
Monday Ponderings {February 13th}
The goal of my spiritual life is such close identification with Jesus Christ that I will always hear God and know that God always hears me. If I am united with Jesus Christ, I hear God all the time through the devotion of hearing. A flower, a tree, or a servant of God may convey God’s message to me. What hinders me from hearing is my attention to other things…
Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest
||winged words||
•blank page, cut hand
ink dribbled off edge
down onto palm of mine
mingle with blood
can they course through
both vein & pen?
can winged words
life blood be
ink that oxygenates
black to bloody red
soaring over pulsating sea
red & black scribbles
across wide, white expanse
staunch the wound
bleed the ink
my heart is lanced •
A. M. Pine, originally for the Peace Poem Project, drawing from this well.
Monday Ponderings {February 6th}
If the wind from the promised land is at times cruel, it is to remind me that my journey is not yet complete.
Michael D. O’Brian, Strangers and Sojourners, p. 193
22 Favorite Reads from 2022
2022 was SUCH a great reading year for me! I learned more about what I really love, what encourages me, inspires, and challenges. I’m hoping to bring my insights into my 2023 reading and have an thoughtful and nourishing year. In no particular order here are my favorites in small snippets!
1. High Rising by Angela Thirkell ~ English humor, a widowed author and her young son embroiled in village life.
2. Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson ~ orphan Maia travels to live with distant relatives on the Amazon. Brazil, found family, nature, and a wonderful governess, Miss Minton!
3. Family Sabbatical by Carol Ryrie Brink ~ Professor Ridgeway is heading to France with his authoress wife and three children. In the same vein as the first book, they have heartwarming family adventures.
4. All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot ~ a lovely, humorous memoir on a Yorkshire Dale veterinarian’s adventures.
5. The Summer Book by Tove Jansson ~ a quiet, introspective look at the relationship of a grandmother & granddaughter and the natural world.A gentle look at youth and aging.
6. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith ~ a coming-of-age story with an eccentric, surprisingly human bunch of characters. A peek at a writer’s soul in Cassandra.
7. All Manner of Things by Susie Finkbeiner ~ gentle historical fiction set around Vietnam War and one family’s love and lessons in a small Midwest town.
8. Skellig by David Almond ~ grief, fear, and new beginnings through the eyes of a young boy as he befriends an angelic being.
9. Emily of Deep Valley by Maud Hart Lovelace ~ a coming-of-age story with a deep theme of sacrifice and selflessness. Young girl changes the lives of those around her in a meaningful way, gifting herself beauty in the process.
10. Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens ~ lovely, deep characters ! So many favorites, Mrs. Boffin, Mr. Wilfer, and Bella – John Harmon was so interesting. The antagonist, Bradley Headstone reminds me of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. May be my current favorite Dickens!
11. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn ~ sobering look at one day in a Soviet work camp. I read this in January and STILL think about it!
12. Wives & Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell {reread} ~ such a lovely, introspective look at a widower doctor and his daughter and the surrounding village. Mr. Gibson’s remarriage brings about change and growth.
13. The Scent of Water by Elizabeth Goudge {reread} ~ a second chance for a single older woman as she inherits her aunts cottage and memories in the countryside.
14. Martha’s Vineyard: Isle of Dreams by Susan Branch {reread} ~ Susan’s thoughts and dreams as she begins again after a hard divorce. Domestic and creative, so inspiring!
15. Christy by Catherine Marshall {reread} ~ a young girl travels to teach in the Smokey Mountains, growing in faith and love. The strong female friendships in this story touched me deeply. This was probably my favorite of the year.
16. The Magic Summer by Noel Streitfeild ~ four children have to stay in remote Scotland with their great aunt. They learn resourcefulness and cooperation toward each other.
17. The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery {reread} ~ lovely second chance of life story. There is SO much to love about this. Parts are a little far fetched, but Valancy’s story is so inspiring!
18. The Secret of Nightingale Wood by Lucy Strange ~ Henrietta’s care and concern for her ill mother and her baby sister are so inspiring. I love that nature and books help in this slightly scary tale of courage.
19. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen {reread} ~ I found the antagonists in this book to be SUCH amazing character studies. Mrs. Norris in particular, her sly, manipulative ways, so disturbing. This book is a lesson in what NOT to be.
20. Mary Barton by Elizabeth Gaskell ~ Murder, selfishness, growth, classism, forgiveness, redemption, and so much more made this an amazing read. So many great characters, Job & Margaret Leigh, Jem Wilson, and the Sturgis couple…Alice & Will…all stand out to me!
21. The Christmas Hirelings by Mary Elizabeth Braddon {audio book – performed by Richard Armitage} ~ this was a charming, heartfelt story about a selfish grandfather estranged from his daughter and grandchildren. It hit me just at the right moment and Armitage was an AMAZING reader.
22. Aggressively Happy by Joy Marie Clarkson ~ a lovely Christian nonfiction that touched me deeply. About knowing you are loved by God and living content in whatever season you find yourself.
Have you read any of these? What were your favorite reads of last year? 😍♥️🌿📚
Monday Ponderings {January 23rd}
…Oh, it is well to waken with the woods
And feel, as those who wait with God alone,
The forest’s heart in these rare solitudes
Beating against our own.
Close-shut behind us are the gates of care,
Divinity enfolds us, prone to bless,
And our souls kneel. Night in the wilderness
Is one great prayer.
excerpt from “Midnight in Camp” by Lucy Maud Montgomery
Monday Ponderings {January 16th}
O God, along with sunny days, life brings its nights of ills…and if fearlessly I face these nights, my soul in rapture thrills…
Each time I face life’s disciplines, unbowed and unafraid…then deep within this heart of mine new courage is displayed…
When disappointments come my way, don’t let me run and hide…for if I stand with head erect, then courage will abide…
It’s not what happens to me, God, but what I do with it…that helps determine whether I shall fall or rise a bit.
“Don’t Let Me Run and Hide” by George Bilby Walker, The Quiet Time: A Collection of Prayer-Poems, p.20
A.M. Pine - Hearth Ridge Reflections 