Measuring Line

There is no speech, nor are there words
whose voice is not heard.
Their measuring line goes out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world.

Psalm 19.3-4

The power of our words is remarkable. We discount the fact that the words we say (or don't say) leave an impact that can be good or bad.

We should be so thoughtful in the words we use, the comments we make, and the things we write to others. The impressions of outsiders is going to stick, meaning, if you say something that clearly doesn't express love toward others in a God-love way, that is going to leave an incorrect impression about how Christians act and speak.

It can be difficult to watch your words these days when we have almost unlimited ways to leave our words everywhere. With technology, it's not just emails and phone calls, but it's texting, facebook, blogs, and countless other social media outlets.

Here's how I break it down: God has given us words. There is no other creature that has the intelligent design to speak words and form them in mind. These are gifts to be used for good. We should treat them as such and be thankful that we are highly intelligent creatures who engage in conversation and stories. But don't forget that your words will stretch father than you even know.....

Harvard

If you didn't already know, I kind of have a thing for old prestigious universities (ie: Harvard, Brown, Oxford) that are historic, beautiful, and full of learning opportunities. Every time I travel I try to find a cool university to explore and learn about. I guess I am a complete nerd when it comes down to it, and I like to imagine myself a student again, just for fun! These places also tend to have a lot of coffee shops and bookstores, which is highly attractive to me. I know I am a nerd, and I secretly (or not so secretly) wish I could be a student at such a place like this. But I love to explore the campus, the buildings, the classes, and meet people who go there. I like to learn about the university history and their silly and serious traditions.

Every time I visit such places and ask someone questions about either directions or about a building, they are so open to explain and share about the history or the meaning of something. I love to hear people's perspectives of the place. Tourists abound at Harvard, especially Asians I noticed. We tagged along on one campus tour that we happened upon while we wandered the campus. The young student in a sweatshirt and jeans was bouncy and exuberant. We stood in front of the Memorial Church and she told us about the bells and about the history of the building.

I was sad because I was not allowed in the huge columned library. Student access only. What is that? So, we wandered into the Philosophy building next to the library instead and heard lectures going on (the classroom doors were all open) as we walked down the hall to a large lecture room, where I sat and imagined for a moment that I was in school, a bit dreamily.

The motto of Harvard (and in the first picture above in white) is Veritas, which means truth in Latin. All the diplomas are still written in Latin (except your name). It all made me wish I had to learn Latin back in high school or college, but Latin wasn't even offered anywhere! I suppose since there is no country that uses Latin anymore it is considered a dead language, but it is still used at old universities. As it should be. Keep the tradition and language alive. These are things I love about these great universities.

Providence

You may not know this, but the state of Rhode Island is roughly the size of Yosemite National Park. That's pretty small for a state! And with thousands of miles of coastline, it is certainly the "ocean state". The downtown area of Providence flanks their river, which used to be completely covered with roads and parking lots. 20 years ago they opened up their river again and it brought new life to the city. Sidewalks go along both sides of the river for walking, and it's a small enough city to where you can see quite a bit on foot, though there was much more I didn't see.

Exploring Providence was easy. We parked along the street outside of Brown University, an Ivy League school, and walked through the big gates to one of the main, old quadrangles. Surrounded by historic and architecturally interesting buildings, we wandered the quad, entering the student union and a science building, just to poke around the classrooms. Taking a coffee break at the Brown University bookstore was essential, of course. 

We ate lunch downtown near Johnson & Wales University, at a hip, modern spot called Tazza. I had delicious beignets with 3 different kinds of lemon sauce/creams. And my turkey, avocado panini sandwich was so tasty with red potato and sweet potato home fries. The place itself was cozy with clean lines and cool wooden chairs that were actually comfortable.

Of course I found a used bookstore very close to Tazza and discovered a few of the books I talked about here.

Sehnsucht

Romantic longing - Sehnsucht - had played an unusually central part in my experience. Such longing is in itself the very reverse of wishful thinking: it is more like thoughtful wishing.

-C.S. Lewis, introduction to Dymer, 1950

It's the word to describe what you cannot quite put into English words. The longing for more, and not just more of anything, but a spiritual, deep longing which, for Lewis, did not come about as what he was experiencing until he became a Christian. Then he understood that what he had always been longing for, this sense of what he called "northernness" (see my post about Nothernness here), could not be satisfied by anything in this world. This is the defining point of his conversion to Christianity. His realization that if our deepest longings cannot be satisfied in this world, then we must be made for another world. And in that, Christianity was the answer that finally put all the puzzle pieces together for Lewis. All his great myths were actually true here.

Lewis' reversal of wishful thinking to a more desirable thoughtful wishing provokes the notion of being more intentional in deeds. The connotation of wishful thinking sort of promotes a lackadaisical approach to pursuing goals and dreams. One might say "it was wishful thinking that I'd get a ticket to the concert" which doesn't imply much seriousness or deep implications that would affect one's life.

However, this idea of thoughtful wishing is like cleaning smudgy glasses and putting them on to see the wishes in a new, clear view. I envision contemplation and thoughtful musing about one's longings. Whenever one is thoughtful about something which is deeply important to them, they reflect within themselves and their beliefs, which are at their core. In turn, this helps them realize what is most important to them.

Sehnsucht is part of all of us. We all long for what we do not have. We hope for what we do not have. But the depth of the sehnsucht longing is the kind that can only be satisfied through our Creator, which leads us to pursue keeping faith in God and hope in our eternal life with Him, where the sehnsucht will at last be satisfied.

Until then, sehnsucht reminds me of staying in faith and keeping God at my center all the time. To trust in what I cannot yet see. In fact, there is much more to life than what is seen here in this world.

Merriment

A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.
-Proverbs 17.22

I like the word merriment. It is the noun form of the adjective merry, of course, which means happy, cheerful, bright. We say merry most often when we wish someone Merry Christmas. It just sounds so pleasant and invokes cheerfulness, that I want to use it more, and bring more merriment to my everyday. Does it roll of the tongue pleasantly for you too?

I came across the word merriment the other day, and it made me think of how merry I felt while I sat here in the Boston Public Library for a little while, just absorbing the place. At a table with the iconic green lamps, I saw young students cramming for tests, I saw elderly people sitting with a book, I saw middle aged people with a few research books, and I saw a lot of tourists. I know that I was a tourist too, but when I go to a place like this I try to blend in, like a local. As if I was just taking an afternoon at the library. So I sat at this table, sent a text or two, and looked through some of the books I had just purchased at the Brattle Book Shop a short subway ride away. Along all the walls of this huge reading room are bookshelves with reference books. And at each end of the room are more areas of condensed shelves of books. The rest are elsewhere outside of this room.

I enjoyed the quiet atmosphere, especially after coming in off the busy Boston streets. I enjoyed watching people and wondering what they were doing there if they weren't obviously studying with papers and books sprawled out on the table. There's a sense of community here in a library. Even while people study, research, rest, or search the internet on their laptop, we are there for a multitude of reasons, but it's a community place. Everyone is welcome. Everyone can experience it.

After sitting there for a little while in the great reading room, I explored the rest of the building. I liked seeing the old fashioned card catalogs everywhere. The used wooden chairs and tables. The grand and beautiful architecture of the entire building. The artwork that is all over the place that could easily be in a prestigious art museum. I passed several students who were clearly on a massive scavenger hunt through all the elusive hallways and rooms of the library as I went off exploring myself. It's a huge place! I don't think I even found all the rooms that were there. Merriment was naturally felt in this place, for me.

Shoreline

Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.
Isaiah 26.4

I grew up on the shoreline. A little beach town. My house was less than 2 miles from the beach, but not all shorelines are the same. The Florida shore generally has fluffy (sometimes white) sand, calm surf, and warm waters.

Traveling to a new place opens my eyes to things that are different, and intriguing. The coast in New England is rocky. The sand isn't powdery, but speckled with rocks and shells. The water is much colder so the air feels different from the warmth in Florida. It could get chilly on a sunny day in New England.

In some places there are piles of rocks, or lines of rocks leading out into the ocean as if someone were walking out to sea and leaving breadcrumbs in the form of rocks. The water level at low tide is dramatically lower, something like 16 feet! Tides here in Florida are 1-2 feet, so that is a huge variance to me, and it is fascinating to see the difference. Suddenly, big rocks emerge and add color and texture to the landscape at low tide. At high tide, they disappear.

I walked here, along the southern Massachusetts coast a few times during my stay. The waters were calm, protected by land surrounding the bay on two other sides. The air was cool and I wore a scarf and light sweater. Sail boats were everywhere. I have never seen so many sailboats as I did while visiting this area. I would like to experience going out on a sailboat one day. The stillness and quiet of this spot was almost deafening. The only sound was the rustle of the tall grasses behind me and the occasional gull. No cars. No voices. Just a gentle presence of chilled sea air and the reminder that God is in all of it. Every good thing is only possible because of God.

Breathing deep the fresh air, I was filled with thankfulness.

I can't resist adding a great song to this post. Click here to listen to "Shoreline" by Deas Vail.

New England Book Tales

When I travel I love to seek out used bookstores wherever I might be. Okay. That's no shock to anyone who knows me. However, if I flew to my destination, I am limited as to how many books I can purchase because I have to carry them home!
No problem.
I have become a pro at packing a lot into my small red suitcase, and leaving some extra space for possible (haha, I mean probable) book purchases.

Anyway, as you can see by my photo above, Boston, Harvard, and Providence did not disappoint. All of these books fit into my suitcase, save for a few that I carried in a small tote bag.

In Providence, RI I found several books at a used book store, and later that evening I was flipping through these books and noticed that the Madeleine L'Engle book I had just purchased for $1.75 was signed by her!! Well, to an avid reader, this is a pretty special thing. Especially for me because most of my favourite authors are from the 19th or 20th century and therefore the chances of a signed copy is slim to nil. But I have always loved Madeleine L'Engle, and she passed away within the last decade, so she is very much a part of this century. And quite a fun little thing to find in my book!

(By the way, I have already finished reading Dragons in the Waters. It was a murder mystery and kept me turning the pages to find out what happened.)

Some of the other purchases that I am excited to dive into:

1. The Allegory of Love, C.S. Lewis - Lewis was a professor of medieval literature, and in this book he writes about medieval love in the writings of the time. I had heard of this book because it is the first written after he became a Christian, so it interests me, but it might be hard to get into because I am not as passionate or knowledgeable about the medieval times. It might just take me awhile to read.

2. Narrative Poems, C.S. Lewis - Never have I seen this book before, so I was pretty excited to find it outside the Brattle Book Shop in Boston in their mark-down section! $3 is fine with me! I know that in Lewis' early years he was especially fond of writing long narrative poems, but it was not what people thought he was best at, and the one that was published didn't sell well. He stopped writing them. This book contains the four that he wrote. I am eager to read these.

3. Gerard Manley Hopkins, Poems and Prose - I have been looking, searching, treasure-hunting for any books with Hopkins' writings. I enjoy his poems so much. His word selection is so interesting, using lots of descriptive words (many times with the same beginning letter). I will posting on him in the near future, so keep reading.

4. The Selected Poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay - I am not very familiar with her, yet. But in a tiny bookstore in a tiny town in Massachusetts called Marion, I found this book in their poetry section and stood there for 15 minutes reading her poems. Her poems are easy to read but full of possibility and imagination. I realized that instead of standing there reading her poems in the bookstore, I should probably just buy the book. So I did.

5. The Divine Comedy, Dante - After reading Paradise Lost by John Milton, I have been wanting to read this masterpiece. I never had a copy.....until now!

6. The Sonnets of Shakespeare - Sure I have read some of these, but I don't have a book of sonnets, and this book is an old, beautiful, blue hardbound book. It's easy to just pick it up at odd times and read a few sonnets. Have you ever read any? Give them a shot.

7. The Haunting of Hill House, Shirley Jackson - I just started reading this and it's so enjoyable thus far. I love the way Shirley Jackson writes. It is quirky with little spots of subtle humour, even within a "scary" story. I really enjoyed We Have Always Lived in the Castle and there are similar elements in this story. Being that it is October now, a little spooky story sounds just right!

8. Caleb's Crossing, Geraldine Brooks - the family friend who I stayed with in Massachusetts recommended this book to me. It's a new fiction, which normally I am not drawn to, but every once in a while I give it a try. It has a lot to do with Harvard and the area that I was visiting, so it should be an interesting read.

Tangerine Glow

Beautiful tangerine glow
in the sky,
looking from eye level
so it seems.

From high above the land,
clouds look purple
or is that the land?
We're in another world.

The tangerine light streams
into the cabin
and my eyes are drawn
to another of God's delight.
The arrival of the night.

-written on my flight back from New England, with the sun setting outside my plane window as we soared high above the land, following the curve of the earth and seeing the sun in a new light.

Mansions

When I think of a summer cottage, this is not what I would imagine. But this is what was reality not to long ago (late 1800s-mid 1900s) in homes like this in Newport, Rhode Island. I hesitate to call them houses. It's more like each is a museum and a collection of the most expensive furnishings, walls, floors, and decorations. It is beautiful, to be sure, when you enter these homes for a tour. The grandeur feeling as you enter makes you feel like you are special for being in there, like an invited guest. The architecture is admirable. The staircases are grand. The details are ornate, and you are walking on marble imported from Switzerland or somewhere.

Anyone can appreciate the artisan work and craftsmanship of the curving staircases, the gold details, the imported red marble, the carvings, and the artwork. But when you take the tour, you learn about the family and what drove them to have such expensive, grand, and fancy surroundings. It was all about money, power, and social standing. One home had to be nicer and bigger than the next. In one home, you hear about journal entries from the daughter, who writes about her lack of freedom as her mother prepares her for being married off to a duke. Strict rules for her, set by her mother, were in place to make the young girl a "perfect" specimen. And then the mother divorces the father, which was not the savvy thing at the time, but she used that spotlight as a platform to encourage other women to stand up and do whatever they wanted, too, like divorce. The stories about the families made me kind of sad.

It all made me think about Jesus' words from Matthew 6.19-21:
Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

While these homes are beautiful to visit, and excellent examples of skilled craftsmanship, it also reminded me that none of it is eternal. They preserve everything and repair structures when they crack, but those 22k gold walls won't last forever. Though none of us have gold plated walls, we all have certain things that we treasure, and as I left those homes I kept hearing Jesus' words in my heart.

The gripping part of Jesus' words is the last sentence. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 

Note to Self

I believe that I shall look upon the
goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living!
Wait for the Lord,
be strong, and let your heart take
courage,
wait for the Lord!

-Psalm 27.13-14

I think it's the kind of waiting that goes along with being patient; an active waiting, rather than a passive waiting (which would be idle and lazy) that the Psalmist is writing about. How many of us would rather not wait for that things we so desire? We are impatient by nature. We recognize that this time we have on earth is fleeting. So, we are obliged to enjoy the lovely things that God has provided. Seize the opportunities and joys. But at the same time wait for God to show you the next step. Don't get so wrapped up in yourself that you start listening to yourself rather than God. Even when standing on the edge....pause and listen.

Seek ye first the kingdom of God.
And all these things shall be added unto you.
(Matthew 6.33)