I am spending a lot more time at home, just as you are. I don't mind it too much. Being quite fond of spending time at home, I find that my tiny tree house home is quite a nice spot to be tucked away for these weeks upon weeks of quarantine/isolation/social distancing. There are times, of course, where it is more difficult for various reasons, but I try to remain positive and think about all the good things about being home.
What are you favourite, comforting things about home?
Here are a few of mine:
- Waking up comfortably underneath a soft, fluffed duvet as the birds chirp to greet the morning.
- Grinding my own coffee beans by a hand-grinder, then pouring the hot water over the coffee as it percolates into the glass chemex, pour-over style. Adding oat milk to my coffee to make the perfect cup.
- Listening to the different kinds of birds and owls that call my neighborhood their home, too. I can detect the cardinal, blue jay, crow, woodpecker, and owl, though I know there are many more.
- Watching the sun rise as the colours expand into pinks, oranges, and yellows through my kitchen window.
- Reading through the Old Testament with my breakfast each morning.
- Journaling every morning with my cup of coffee is always a great comfort - my chance to think, pray, wonder, write poems, linger in ideas, etc...Whatever comes to mind as my brain wakes up.
- Creating new variations of meals just by altering ingredients or adding something to give a little extra flavor and therefore a little more special/exciting.
- Slowing down in almost everything I do, to try to enjoy it more. I have nowhere to rush off to, so I can spend a little more time enjoying it.
- Turning off the news. Only a brief update is allowed.
- The natural light that comes through my windows, even on cloudy, grey days.
- Picking up my current book for a few minutes of delightful adventure/mystery story.
- Sitting at my table, writing a few letters to put in the mail to some people.
- Still being able to connect with my people (family, friends, work, church) through calls or video conference.
- My elevenses pot of earl grey tea.
- Working on writing my next book. I love where the story is going.
- Checking my mail at lunchtime just after it's delivered. I am never usually home to get my mail in the middle of the day.
- Sitting, pondering, listening, thinking, enjoying. In the quiet.
A Poem for Isolation
A thought heard from a quiet space
Of isolation; rules set by government
To stay at home, in one's own place.
We settle into a strange, worldwide experiment.
My heart enters into the quiet willingly.
No doubts rise that these days can be joy.
But pain and suffering reaches me solemnly,
So prayers are lifted, as many to deploy,
Because the shadows come in many forms
And our lives were changed almost overnight,
Stripping us from our daily meetings and norms,
Threatening what once was - our sense of delight.
Yet - - while God's promises remain true,
I can fully trust that these dark days
Are not an end, but a beginning, new
Days rise from deepest, lo! His higher ways.
It is late morning on the weekend as I write this. Rain and thunder fill the sky, and typify the most ideal time to be reading indoors, snuggled on the sofa. Maybe even with a cup of tea within arm's reach. My comforts at home lately have been books. In a time of isolation, many of us are having a hard time with various aspects of living in an age of Coronavirus.
I thought I would share some books that have been filling my time and imagination with good stories and/or thoughts. Maybe something will spark your interest.
The Other Side of the Sun
Madeleine L'Engle
I am still thinking about this book, which is the sign of a well-written story. L'Engle has always been a delightful storyteller to me, and I have read almost every book she has written, but this one somehow slipped through the cracks. It takes place after the Civil War, and a young British bride comes over from England to stay with her new husband's eccentric aunts, uncles, and great-aunts in their massive home on the beach on the South Carolina coast. Whilst her husband is immediately called away to handle some secret foreign state crisis, she has to navigate the south's culture, heat and humidity of the south, family secrets, and some intense racial issues that she had never been exposed to before. This story displays L'Engle's masterful way of weaving complex situations within the realm of an extended family. She always writes so beautifully about family.
All Hallows' Eve
Charles Williams
His stories always have a supernatural element of the earthly world suddenly being invaded by the realm beyond. There is usually a little bit of the creepy and disturbing. C.S. Lewis was a great admirer of Charles Williams, and he became an Inkling, joining that literary group in Oxford at Lewis's invitation. I have deeply enjoyed each of the books I have read so far. In this novel (taking place in WWII time), a young women finds herself walking across Westminster Bridge in London, noticing how strange it is that nobody is there, and how it is dead silent. She realizes shortly thereafter that she is dead, and yet she is roaming the streets of London. Someone is trying to break into the realm of the dead. The love between she and her husband defies the separation of death, but the goodness will have some twisted evil to face, in a man who is known as Father Simon.
The Word in the Wilderness
Malcolm Guite
This was my Lenton devotional reading each morning, in which Malcolm selected a poem for each day, and wrote a reflection on that poem. I so deeply enjoyed this book, and every poem he selected (some poems were his own, and others were my favourites like Gerard Manley Hopkins, George Herbert, Dante, Milton, and a few lovely modern poets). It started my morning off with exactly what I needed - a wonderful poem to make me think, and a short reflection to help me go deeper with the poet and the poem. I was truly sad when this book ended.
City Guide, London
Cereal Magazine
Feeling the loss of my trip to England in March-April, I started reading this beautiful guide book before everything fell apart in the world. It is a sleek, modern guide of a few of the charming places in London, from bookshops (Daunt Books!) to cafes, to museums, the book also shares some of the stories of designers who call London home, and what they love about such a multi-cultural vast city with its own smaller, distinct neighborhoods that each tell their own fascinating story. The photographs are beautiful and artistic, and it's a refreshing, minimal spin on a guidebook. It is a curated guidebook.
Before the Coffee Gets Cold
Toshikazu Kawaguchi
This little Japanese story charmed me. It is about a little basement coffee shop down a side alley in Tokyo. It has been there for more than 100 years. In this tiny cafe, if you sit in a particular chair and have the coffee poured out for you at the table, you will travel back in time to a time of your choosing. But there are rules you must abide by: you cannot leave the chair, nothing you say or do can change the present, and you must drink the whole cup of coffee before it gets cold. So, there is a time limit. There are consequences if you do not drink the coffee before it gets cold. This is the tale of those who chose to go back in time for a particular reason - to see a loved one, to receive a letter, to see a child, etc. The stories are touching, and the characters are charming. And I wanted to drink coffee the whole time I read it.
There was a little corner of his mind that was still his own, and light came through it, as through a chink in the dark: light out of the past. It was actually pleasant, I think, to hear a kindly voice again, bringing up memories of wind, and trees, and sun on the grass, and such forgotten things.
- The Fellowship of the Ring, J.R.R.Tolkien
Now is the time to read The Lord of the Rings again. Re-visiting Middle-earth is a comfort to me, beginning with a familiar Hobbit hole, cosy and warmed by a roaring fire and good food. It begins quietly, with Hobbits enjoying the fruits of their land. Unbeknownst to them a darkness has been awoken and is spreading rapidly. The darkness will soon reach the Shire, where the Hobbits live. Something must be done to protect the goodness of the world.
Enter in a wizard named Gandalf and a Hobbit named Frodo. They both sacrifice everything to rid the world of the darkest evil, the one ring. It is an adventure story about letting go. Rarely do we read a story about a quest to let go. It is usually about acquiring something. This is the kind of story that makes you want to be brave. It makes you want to do whatever it takes to help save your friends. It shows how deep friendships sown will remain steadfast and true, even when everyone is split up all across Middle-earth and they feel alone.
The road is perilous. Places once assumed to be safe no longer are. Danger follows. Shadows wait for the passing of good. And yet, there are places still that glow in beauty. There is a refuge of safety and magic in the house of Tom Bombadil. Elves welcome travelers into their protected lands for a period of rest amidst the misty waterfalls and leaf-hewn paths. Ancient woods that were asleep for ages come alive as the trees wake up.
How many times can I read these books and feel some different, deeper inspiration from them? Something not noticed before? Every time, I say. These three, thick books are the result of the intense, intricate, painstaking efforts of J.R.R. Tolkien. If it were not for the encouragement given to him by his friend C.S. Lewis, Tolkien would never have finished the books. He was that painstaking, writing and re-writing chapters and whole sections of the story because it didn't live up to what he thought they should be.
These books are masterpieces. You must read them. I know the movies are widely known, and they do a good job with bringing the story to life. But as I always say, the books are always better. They always are, and I do not waver for a moment in that claim here. It is a truth universally acknowledged that if you desire to read the greatest fantasy adventure story that no other author could ever match, you read The Lord of the Rings.
Do you have a comfort read that you turn to in strange times?
A new page has turned and lo! Behold - He is risen!
Look to the east - the Light emerges from the depths of darkness. The eastern dawn rises on the third day and we find that the darkness was not dark to Him. In fact, we do not have to dwell in the darkness of the unknown. A new promise is offered to us with Jesus. In our current worldwide crisis when many may be asking why God is not near to us, may this day be a reminder that God is always with us, next to us, and within us at every moment.
Easter morning! This is our shift from not knowing to the revelation of love. Death has lost its sting - it does not rule over us anymore. It is not the end. From death to life - our Saviour begins the new chapter of our eternity.
Here, now, the infinite timeline has crossed into the finite. Jesus is the firstborn of New Creation, and brought it here to earth at this very moment. He mingled in this finite world, talking with the women, to the disciples, eating with them, and encouraging them. Yet, His body is that of New Creation. He started something new. Like a tall, elegant tree bursting forth in blooms, Jesus is risen and alive.
May our hearts allow this truth to dwell deeply, especially in this time of loneliness and isolation. May our souls feel nourished, may our spirits be comforted. Rejoice in this love and this promise.
Happy Easter!
(Photo I took at University Church St. Mary the Virgin in Oxford, April 2019)
The sky turned black, awash with shadow. The winds swirled with menacing vigor. Darkness crept over the land as an evil spirit seemed to rise, suppressing all that was good. The good was swept away in the growing darkness, giving up to it.
Deep within, the spirit felt downcast, defeated, lost, and alone. When all seems lost, there is nowhere to turn. A walk back home, heavy and solemn, to stay tucked away, not knowing how to continue. The days ahead looked grim at best, oppressive most likely. A new sense of normal would have to abide; one that gave a feeling of being utterly alone.
Each hour grew darker as the shadow covered land and soul. The darkest night of the soul.
Yet a tiny ounce of clarity emerged from somewhere, as through a minuscule crack one barely sees. A question. A pondering. What if....
What if this wasn't the end of the story? What if the darkness present was only a momentary affliction, set in an eternal timeline?
The speck of clarity drives the heart forward to expand out of oneself to beyond the scope of a single life, to the big picture of the Story.
An image fills the imagination of a big, beautiful book; one where we are all collected in the Story. We are all part of it, and it is much bigger than we can see from the perspective of our page. There are pages to come that have not been filled. The Author isn't finished yet.
This chapter will end soon.
Three days of unknown. Jesus killed. Hope lost in the darkness.
And yet...
The story was not finished. In fact, it was just beginning. Could we have ever dared to hope?
Wait for the next page.
The scent in the air has changed -
A sweetness like expanding bark
And leaves breathing, diffused into a sky
Now expressing refreshment, a clean slate -
Always what follows heavy rains and winds,
A glory on heights, gifted to me,
Upon reflection with a cup of tea.
Sometimes the only words that come to me in a day are words that come through poetry. Poetry helps me see the world and the good in it. When darkness clouds the lands, sometimes my words drift away, and poetry brings them back. Here are the only words I have, for today.
Palm Sunday.
Holy Week begins.
Another week at home, collecting thoughts.
We are not able to reflect and celebrate together in church. Yet....we can always reflect and muse in our hearts these meaningful days of Holy Week.
Palm Sunday reminds me of how fast crowds can turn. Those who were singing songs of praise on this day, will be shouting "crucify him" by the end of the week. Isn't that what we experience in our own lives? The mentality of a nation or a group shifting when things don't go the way they had in mind?
They thought Jesus would be coming to tear down a government and ride in on a white horse to battle for the people. Instead, Jesus does the opposite. Coming humbly riding on a donkey (not a horse), and succumbing to the powers of the controlling government and mass of people.
God's ways are higher than our own. We need to trust in that, knowing our vision of how we would like things to happen very likely won't. God has even bigger plans we cannot see.
When Jesus came into Jerusalem that Palm Sunday the crowds were singing joy filled songs, yet He knew what was going to happen. Jesus is one with God, so of course He knew. He knew this week would end with his death. He knew the people would turn on him. He knew the path set before Him.
What strikes me so closely, especially right now in our current stress and anxious times of living through a pandemic when we know the end means a lot of death and a changed world, is how Jesus handled the week knowing all that would come.
He took each day as it came and did all the normal, sensible things He would do each day anyway. He ate with friends, taught, told stories, took quiet time to pray, and maybe had tea time (did Jesus drink tea?). He did not panic and hide. He did not fall apart and huddle close to His friends in fear. He continued to love people, talk with people, and spend time with his close friends.
He kept going on, each day, doing the normal things. As we should do now, aside from going places or being close to people. As much as we can, keep the sensible going. Wake up at the usual time, get dressed, make breakfast, drink coffee, read scripture, have quiet time, take some exercise, organize a shelf, make dinner, donate to church or another cause, call family/friends.
I have always liked the essay by C.S. Lewis "On Living in an Atomic Age", published in 1948. Listen to it HERE. He wrote in a time just a few years after the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. He addresses the fears of dying by atomic bomb during a time of high stress and uncertainty in the world. We could easily apply this essay to our current crisis. In the essay, Lewis writes:
The first action to be taken is to pull ourselves together. If we are all going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb when it comes find us doing sensible and human things - praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts - not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs. They make break our bodies (a microbe can do that) but they need not dominate our minds.
Here and now we do not have risen fears of an atomic bomb, but of an invisible microbe, as Lewis puts it. Our options are a little limited today, keeping social distance and staying at home, but we can still go about our daily lives doing sensible things. We, in this modern age, have technology to aid in our ability to call, text, email, or video chat to stay connected. We do not need to let the current situation dominate our minds. There is much we can still do amidst a crisis.
Importantly, we all have gifts that can be used during this fear-filled time, and these things we can do are even more needed now. So often, looking back through history, the greatest of the good creations came out of the darkest times. How can your gifts give glory to God whilst doing good? An easy example is to write a letter to someone. So simple, and yet mail is a sweet way to let someone know they are not alone. It doesn't have to be a big thing (sometimes when things are dark we don't have room to do anything big and all we can manage is something small, and that's okay) but we all are designed with specific gifts to share with the world. Sometimes the smallest act can change the course of the future.
I never get takeaway coffee. I much prefer to drink coffee or tea from a ceramic cup and sit in the coffee shop enjoying the hot drink and the atmosphere with my journal or a book. Whoever thought we would be living days when we are not allowed to sit in coffee shops? Thankfully, I can still support my local coffee shop by getting a coffee in a paper cup. Though not my preference, I would still like to support them. I go home and make my home the coffee shop. It is temporary after all.
I am not one who tends to get stir crazy, but I imagine that over the course of weeks of being at home, even I will feel the effects of feeling a bit of cabin fever. You might already be feeling it.
I thought it would be fun to share a few links to things that have been keeping me entertained and/or inspired these days:
I am a big astronomy nerd who loves learning about space, stars, planets, and the science that is discovering all things strange and mysterious in our universe. Dr. Becky is an astrophysicist at Oxford, and I love watching her informative and entertaining videos.
If you like to draw, or your kids like to draw, of if you just want to be entertained, I highly recommend you go over to the Serious Creatures videos to watch Brady draw fun creatures. I guarantee you will laugh. Brady and his wife Amber are friends who live in Lebanon, running a home for orphans. I got to meet up with them in Oxford a few years back and we romped around Oxford and the Cotswolds. They are such lovely people.
The Rabbit Room has always been a source of inspiration for me for many years, with new ideas, sharing of artistic creations, and creative outlets. It is a creative Christian community that is based in Nashville, but is online and connected all over the world. They of course take their name from the small room (called "The Rabbit Room") in The Eagle and Child Pub in Oxford where The Inklings met on a weekly basis, led by C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. The Podcasts are varied and wonderful.
My favourite living British poet, author, expert on the Inklings, speaker, Anglican Priest, etc, Malcolm Guite started a YouTube Channel where he posts short videos welcoming you to his library and reading from a few books. I could listen to him talk about poetry, the Inklings, or George MacDonald all day.
Through Oxford University, exploring their Curious Minds website with connections to visit the world’s museums, libraries, etc – and give your brain a workout – all from your own home. I am a particular fan of browsing the ancient and Medieval books in the Digital Bodleian.
Books:
- I just finished reading Unnatural Death by Dorothy L Sayers. Another Lord Peter Wimsey mystery that delights and makes me think. There is something about a mystery story that takes us out of our own anxious thoughts.
- I am reading The Ten Second Rule by Clare De Graaf with my Sunday School class. A great reminder that we have the power to do good things and our rule should be that if we think we might be led to do something good and it's within your power, do it immediately (within 10 seconds) before you get distracted and never do it.
- I am reading The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame for the first time. My mum bought the delightful small old hardback book when we were in Oxford last year, and gave it to me for my birthday in January.
Music:
- Chill (non vocal) music is best while I am working (it helps me focus), whether I am in the office or at my kitchen table. A current favourite playlist.
- Jeremy Casella in the car right now (not that I am driving much these days) - one of his newest songs is particularly appropriate for today.
