Night Sky

Look up at night. Do you ever notice the stars and planets? If you have not looked up recently, now is a perfect time to catch a spectacular event - the great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn, which can be seen very easily just after sunset for about 1-2 hours before the planets set. The actual meeting of the planets is December 21, but many days before and after is a visual feast of cosmic wonder. It has been for weeks already. 

The largest planets on our solar system, the gas giants Jupiter and Saturn have not come together like this in our sky view since 1623. So, this is a 400 year wait for this beautiful and mysterious sight in the sky. 

This special event is coming to be called the Christmas Star. There is a wondering if this occurrence is what happened at the time of Christ's birth. The bright star at the incarnation, creating the guide for the Magi to come visit Bethlehem. What if it was the conjunction of the planets and not a star at all? That question invokes wonder and delight in my imagination. Could it be that we shall witness in the sky what announced Christ's birth more than 2,000 years ago in 7 BC, which was also a year of a great conjunction? Even if it is not, it still creates awe in me. The next viewable event won't happen for another 60 years, so this may be your only chance to see the friendly meeting of Jupiter and Saturn in the sky. Don't worry, they are still millions of miles distant from each other, so they are keeping their social distance.

This is the view from my front door a few nights ago (terrible quality I know) - Saturn is smaller on the left, Jupiter is larger on the right. Pull out your telescope or binoculars for an amazing view.

Look up in wonder each night!

Thoughts Provoked

 

Somehow amidst the crazy days that these weeks have contained, I have been reading a lot. I think it is my way of recharging after very busy days, and over the weekends. Reading and escaping into another story is fun, imaginative, and creates thought-provoking insights that stay with me for weeks after I finish. 

The Idiot
Fyodor Dostoyevsky
First Published 1869

For the month of November I joined a re-along hosted by an Instagram friend, @amerestory, her blog is HERE, whose favourite author is Dostoyevsky and she has many insights to share on his writing. She digs into the themes he presents in social situations of the Russian high society, and it was really enjoyable to follow along with her. I had not read this book before, so it was completely new to me, and I enjoyed it but it is also the kind of book that needs some discussion as many of the characters open up a deeper study of humanity.

The book follows a young man, Prince Myshkin, who returns (after recovering from illness in Switzerland) to St. Petersburg and comes to find out the realities of the social and family scenes of Russia. He has a naïve soul, innocent and honest. He is mocked for his childlikeness, yet he is turned to by the various characters because he is open and thoughtful. He gets things wrong, but is meant to be an image of a "wholly virtuous man". Through the course of his arrival into Russian, he becomes entangled with two different women, and the interactions that take place amongst the families and gatherings is full of drama with pieces of deeper meanings. With each conversation the reader gets to see some aspect of the many characters unfold and then begin to see the truth coming out about them.

The Hopkins Manuscript
R.C. Sherriff
First Published 1939

This is a science fiction novel published during WWII, with warnings to future generations. While the science of it is not a warning, the undertones of all the human decisions are, and it's interesting to me how much of the early science fiction novels aimed toward warning the future (ie. us) of possible effects of humanity's choices. 

The premise of the story is that the moon somehow loses its orbit and begins to fall toward earth, eventually falling into the Atlantic Ocean, causing devastating effects upon England, the perspective from where the story takes place, and the decisions made after the event that change the course of the entire earthly history. 'The Hopkins Manuscript' becomes a historical artifact of the past, and is written by Edgar Hopkins, who wrote all his experience through the tragic event and afterwards. He hid his manuscript in a thermos in a fireplace, which was found hundreds of years later in the ruins of London, which is one of the only written pieces of history left behind. Even if you do not like science fiction, this was a good, engrossing read, that was fascinating study of human choice after disaster.

Advent Season

 

God of the watching one,
give us Your benediction.

God of the waiting ones,
give us Your good word for our souls.

We all have a sense of longing and knowing that we have to harness patience for certain things. We do not generally like being patient, especially in this modern day of being able to receive satisfaction almost immediately. In ages past, the things we receive quickly now might have taken days/weeks. Letters and correspondence, for example. Today we can send instant texts and emails. Just twenty years ago a letter would take several days to get to a recipient and there were no cell phones. There are good aspects of being able to communicate quicker, but in an interesting way it could also mean something is lost in depth and detail that used to be shared in letters.

Something I have been pondering lately is how as we ache for something that seems just out of grasp, it is God we ache for, even if we do not see it. Always - in everything. While we search for that which will make us happy in this world, the deepest desires can only be satisfied in God, which is where our desires are meant to be derived. We are fools to seek anything outside of God will fulfill us, and as the author of Ecclesiastes reminds us it is like chasing the wind. You will never catch it.

I am thankful for this season traditionally spent waiting and seeing the light amidst darkness. It reminds me that we are not able to see the future - we do not know what is coming next. If we think imaginatively as if we were living B.C. in this advent season, we could ponder what it might have been like before the incarnation and get a sense of the sort of darkness the world was enshrouded in. We are people who have come after the Light has been in this world in person. We have the advantage of knowing that part of the story, and we sit in the dark for the next part of the story, always with the Light to guide us.  God does not leave us alone in that journey. He gives us a great Light of the world.

Wintry Themes

 

Than these November skies
Is no sky lovelier. The clouds are deep;
Into their grey the subtle spies
Of colour creep,
Changing that high austerity to delight,
Till even the leaden interfolds are bright.

- John Freeman (1880 - 1929)

Some recent days of moody, misty, milky weather have nudged me into some wintry themes at home. Some pretty wooden trees have emerged to add some cheer. Even some sweaters have adorned my arms (much to my delight). Overcast greyscale skies tend to lean toward the feeling of winter and hibernation. Even if the temperatures are not freezing, a soft dip feels significant in contrast to the intense summer heat. 

We are meant to embrace seasons differently. As the hours of days grow darker and the wind rustles colder air into our neighborhoods, similar to the trees and bears falling into hibernation, we are meant to slow down as winter draws near. In a season of darker days and cold we can warm our homes with comfort and light. Spiritually, we can prepare for the season of Advent and the waiting in the darkness and unknown before the coming of Jesus.

I love these seasons of Autumn and Winter because after such a long and sweltering heat of many months, my soul needs a revival of thoughtful, meaningful, deeper musings that can come from the explorations and themes that comes along with the colder, darker seasons. 

It is no great surprise that in the lectionary the Book of Revelation is what is being read through November before Advent begins. With a book of pictures presented in the vision of John on Patmos, we get some imaginative glimpses into the future - some images of terror, and then wonderful images of the New Creation. It is a reminder that even amidst the darkness of our land (and our nations) our true light comes from a source unalterable and unchangeable. The light of the Lord Jesus.

May we feel the blessing in that truth. Happy Thanksgiving!

Paradox of Time in 2020

Coffee cheers!

Sometimes I ponder about the oddness of our lives, and how we experience things in our everyday (like time and the strangeness of it), whilst drinking my morning coffee at my desk, next to my biggest bookshelf with a view outside.

Is it me or has the pace of this year been both slow and fast? The paradox of time is that we are stuck in it (and cannot see beyond this very moment), but it somehow has the ability to move at different paces according to how we pay attention (or do not pay attention).

I find that when I pay attention in the present moment, fully and deeply, noticing details and feelings time slows down to meet me. When I am able to do this the feeling of stress and the never-ending to do list notions tend to slip away, not disappearing but just possessing a lesser hold on my soul.

But things cannot always be slow and my attention is often very scattered and as I try to accomplish several things at once (which never really works well). Time dwindles quickly and I never have enough hours to finish and it seems like I never will. 

Is this the kind of year you are are glad to see end? Has a slower pace been granting you time you have needed? Or has there been no slower pace? I have had a mixture of both, which is probably why I am feeling this paradox of time. I have found that when I slow down and focus on one thing, noticing the details, and appreciating what it is, I am able to accomplish more in the end (whether that is completing my to do list or just tidying up my home). But when I rush, I am not appreciating, only flying by.

Simple notions like slowing down become complex as we make them that way with our desire to do more than we should. We are all different in the amount we can do, of course. But all of us can benefit from a more thoughtful pace in everything. I am learning this and trying to do this in my own days. It is really hard. This morning coffee time is my critical time to start the day in this mindset, with prayers that it continues through the rest of the day.

Autumnal Beauty

 

Poetry makes immortal all that is best and most beautiful in the world.

- Percy Bysshe Shelley

There was a day or two that felt autumnal recently. When that happens after a deep, long summer, my imagination awakens and the words come flowing, inspired by the change I long for all summer. When I get to don a sweater and feel the chilly air atmosphere, my heart leaps with joy and appreciation. May more of these autumnal days come again soon. Until then, a poem in the likeness of a memory must suffice.

Autumnal Beauty

An Autumnal firmament view on this eve -

Intricately patterned in a seasonal shift.

Green leaves rustle and some take their leave -

Embracing a change entering windy and swift.

Our neighborhood star rising on a skew -

Beams of morning gold slant in their space,

Evincing me a turn of time I view,

Pondering the perspective from such heavenly place.

The cosmos is our ceiling, a starry roof -

Reaching beyond imagination and eyes.

We measure and detect with no visual proof -

Yet we acknowledge and wonder at God's grand skies.

The falling leaf gives me this to know -

The mystery of every created pleasure -

Our meaningful ability to observe, learn, and grow -

Is a perfect posture for every day leisure.

The Selador Story

 

Have you ordered your copy of my new book? It came out last week and with all the mess of our world, may it be a good distraction and escape into another realm.

Book One - Selador: The Book of Time is available HERE

Book Two - Selador: The Secret Paths is available HERE

If you haven't read the story yet, here is a recap of the books. If you have read them I'd love if you rated them on Amazon or left a review:

Selador: The Book of Time - In the first book we meet Nella, who finds herself in a stark white tunnel, walking alone, not sure of how or why she was there. Something moves her forward and she tries door handles at least reaching one that leads her outside, and into a beautiful woodland realm which is in extreme contrast to the tunnel she just left. 

Nella journeys into the forest and meets someone (a guardian she learns later) who hurries her to a staircase that wraps around the tree to the top, where a set of huts seem to be built. Narrowly escaping the rushing waters that come sweeping through the forest on a daily basis, she makes it up to the village and learns as she meets the leader that she is known by them. She has a purpose to fulfill, but what could that be? She is a writer, but how could that be used?

Selador: The Secret Paths - In this second book we pick up where the first book leaves off, after Nella uses her gifts of writing in The Book of Time to protect the village, and the cost that came with it. She begins to explore deeply her memories, which she can draw upon if she chooses to. But why did she hide memories? What painful experiences did she purposely tuck away? 

The friendships all deepen with Master Nolan, Lady Cora, Lady Kira, and Miriam. Nella grows to love the village and the people as she learns more about her past and the shocking revelation that is told to her, which leads to the next dangerous journey to protect what is good, true, and beautiful.

Autumn Greetings from Home (+ books!)

 

2020. This year has been so strange hasn't it? For the last seven months I have pondered and questioned this world we live in. How an invisible microbe could shut down countries, halt travel, and keep families apart. This year is a mess. There is turmoil and division in the world and close to home in our own towns. There is fear in the air. There is anger and strong opinions that do not stop to listen.

Even though I have not traveled at all this year, and it feels so strange, I have been taking advantage of the time at home for organizing and focusing on writing by book. Aside from working at the office, I spend the vast majority of time at home. This has many wonderful benefits. I finished writing my book, edited it, had my dear friend proof it (shout out to Jen!), and it is now available on Amazon. I worked on some home projects buying some new pieces of furniture and decor that I have wanted to do for a long time. I have embraced the home body lifestyle, and I am not mad about it. 

My 95-98% introverted self has been okay with being home a lot more than a "normal" year. I have been reading a lot, already beating my 2019 number of books read at this point with 64 books read so far, and we still have two months left in 2020. In my reading, I have been supporting a favourite independent bookshop of mine and buying more new releases than I ever have, to support authors and these tough times when they cannot travel to promote books. This has helped me discover new writers (to me) and enjoy authors' new releases. It has diversified my reading. Some favourite new release (or almost new) books this year have been:

- Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell   

- The Door on Half-Bald Hill by Helena Sorensen

- Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

- The Wood, The Glorious Life of the Oak, and The Secret Life of the Owl all by John Lewis-Stempel

- Philosopher of the Heart: The Restless Life of Søren Kierkegaard by Clare Carlisle

- Tolkien's Lost Chaucer by John M. Bowers

- The Library of Ice: Readings from a Cold Climate by Nancy Campbell

- Burning The Books: A History of Knowledge Under Attack by Richard Ovenden

- Taliesin by Rowan Williams and Gwyneth Lewis (translators) 

- The Golden Thread: How Fabric Changed History by Kassia St. Clair

- Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Have you read any of these? I am so grateful for the books I have read and the ability to have them mailed to me - they have kept me sane in these very odd months! 

Book Release - Selador: The Secret Paths

 

It's available!

You can now buy my new book!

The release of Selador: The Secret Paths is now live.

Here's a tiny glimpse of the new book (I don't even have a final copy yet, this is my draft) - looking a little different from the first book. It is a little bigger in size (5 x 8), has more pages (225), and is sporting a matte black cover.

It is now available on Amazon - CLICK HERE

This book is available for international delivery as well!

I cannot wait for readers to experience this story I have been working on for more than a year! I hope you enjoy it. More to come - I just wanted to share that it is available! Your weekend reading is now sorted.

Mysterious Reads

 

Somehow I finished reading two books on the same day. Two excellent and mysterious books that I could not put down. Books that keep me thinking for a long time afterward. One published in 1934 and one just released last month.

The Nine Tailors 
by Dorothy L. Sayers

Another Lord Peter mystery brings us into the English countryside for a change of scenery. Lord Peter's car ditches him just before New Year's off the side of the road somewhere in the country and he and Bunter are stranded in a nearby town Fenchurch St. Paul with a majestic cathedral known for its ancient bells. Lord Peter stays with the kindly rector and gets to know many of the town's inhabitants. He is called back months later to help solve a mystery when a body is found in the wrong grave. 

This book is praised for Sayers' knowledge and research she did on church bells and the art of ringing. The intricate notes and details about ancient cast bells is remarkable and to me it feels like a different book apart from the other mystery books with Lord Peter. The characters are more developed in this story. This mystery keeps Lord Peter baffled until the very end as each of his theories is dashed when truth is revealed. The conclusion is dramatic and not what anyone in the story expected. 

Piranesi
by Susanna Clarke

This book was published last month and I kept seeing people comment on how wonderful it is. Without knowing anything about it other than reading the synopsis, I ordered it to read myself. The mysterious concept intrigued me from the start. If you decide to read it do not read reviews or spoilers of it first. Enjoy the discovery of it.

Picture a dreamlike environment with a man living in a grand house composed of many endless halls and a sea below the main level of the rooms resulting in tides that flood halls sometimes. He seems to be alone in the house other than one other man who he meets with twice per week. The narrator writes meticulous notes in his journals the details of the halls, the tides, and the statues that adorn every space he has explored. I cannot say much more without giving things away and part of the joy in this book is discovering truths that are revealed so I would never want to steal that from anyone. But this book reminded me a little bit of the movie Inception mixed with books written by Charles Williams (an Inkling and friend of C.S. Lewis). If you like mysterious, dreamlike, fantasy type books, this fits perfectly and I enjoyed it very much.