Interesting times / Times for faith

Musings on faith during Advent.

"May you live in interesting times." Reputed to be an old Chinese saying or curse, these words have been bouncing around in my head for several months. This country, this era in which I find myself is stretching me to my perceived limits. The American people, the American government, American attitudes, politicians' attitudes, students' attitudes; rage, despair, depression; deficits, unemployment, lack of basic needs and services; consumerist, me-centric culture; all of these are weighing on me. As if it's up to me to fix it all. Interesting times, indeed.

And now: the end of a year, the beginning of a season, the shifting from dark to light, the persistence of the Magi, a child born in Bethlehem all point to faith and hope.

How hard it is, when things get dark, to focus on the light. Yet, that is what a faith-walk calls us to do. Faith is confidence or trust. By its definition, it is applied to what is NOT seen, what is NOT experienced. The times when I least feel faith are the times when I most need faith. This paradox is tough for me. It would be easier to give up, to think that God has lost track of us sorry humans, to believe that no good will come from these "interesting times."

And yet. Martin Luther King , Jr. said "Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that." It is only by recognizing the light that the darkness can fade. Sometimes recognizing the light means knowing the light is coming, it's coming, it's HERE! Sometimes recognizing the light means bringing light back in faith, when there's no evidence of it. When it's dark. When it's interesting times.

...Lux venit...Happy Solstice...For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given... In the beginning was the Word...

"Faith is a bird that feels dawn breaking and sings while it is still dark." - Scandinavian saying.

May I be that bird in these interesting times.

It's that time of year....

My version of the Christmas Waltz.

It's that time of year, when the students melt down,
Ev'ry word you hear is a whine: "No one told me...
It's your fault, I'm gonna COMPLAIN!!"
And this song of theirs, full of "it's not fair"s,
Will give me and mine migraines.



Finals end Dec. 17. Yes, I'm counting the days.

Thanks, and Thanks, and Ever Thanks

In no particular order, I give thanks for:

• Health
• Wealth (relative to the rest of the world, we're rolling in it)
• Love
• Faith
• Friends
• Family
• Food every day. An excess of it.
• Books, music, hobbies, and the time to enjoy them
• Education
• Hope
• DOUGHNUTS

I am thankful that:

• I am a woman.
• I am educated.
• I have resources and support and know how to access them.

My life is full and rich and important in all the ways that matter to me. What other response is there, but thanksgiving?

I can no other answer make, but thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks.... Shakespeare

May you be blessed in all the ways that matter to you. Happy Thanksgiving, friends!

Book Reviews

The latest good books from my bookbasket:



1. Broken for You, by Stephanie Kallos. Luminous, sentimental without being maudlin, and a beautiful story about losing and finding, breaking and mending. Margaret Hughes has just been diagnosed with brain cancer and decides to open her Seattle mansion to boarders. Her first, Wanda Schultz, is nursing a broken heart. The two women come to know each other with help from breaking the pilfered antique ceramic treasures that fill Margaret's house. Wonderful characters and deeper meaning if you want it but doesn't beat you over the head.



2. A Reliable Wife, by Robert Goolrick. Gothic and dark and redemptive. Suspenseful and chilling and surprisingly warm. Ralph Truitt, magnate and the most important man in the small town of Truitt, Wisconsin, has sent away for a wife. Catherine Land, an enigmatic and calculating drifter, has answered his ad. Each with their own reasons, each with their own attempts to manipulate the other into the life they think they want, the two tell each other their stories. Set during a cold, bleak winter, this is a powerful story. I enjoyed Goolrick's unique writing style.



3. The Distant Hours, by Kate Morton. My current favorite author's newest tome. Morton's books are layered and thick and secretive and satisfying. This story weaves together publisher Edie Burchill, her mother's history as a WWII evacuee from London, a crumbling castle in Kent, the three daughters of a famed author, the famed author's most popular work, and all of the secrets, heartbreaks, and tragedies carried by each of them. A slow start and multiple story strands keep this from being a quick read, but the end result is stunning.



4. A Vintage Affair, by Isabel Wolff. This book tries really hard to be Important, but it's just a well-written story, and that's just fine. Phoebe Swift leaves her Sotheby's job to open a vintage clothing shop. In the course of collecting beautiful clothing for the store, she meets the ill Mrs. Bell and learns the story behind the fashion and the woman. Side plots are filled with loving and yummy details about beautiful couture, a splash of romantic "should she or shouldn't she" choice between men, and many likable characters. This book will not challenge your worldview but certainly redeems itself from being just another fluffy chick lit selection.



5. Annie's Ghosts, by Steve Luxenberg. In the 1990's, Luxenberg, a journalist, discovers the existence of a mentally ill and physically disabled aunt whom he never knew and who died in 1972. Learning this shocking news just before his mother dies, he and his siblings wrestle with whether or not to investigate. It took several years before he decided to look into the story. This memoir covers family secrets, a sobering look into mental health institutions and treatments, and continually asks (often poignantly) why? Fascinating read.


What have you been reading lately?

Late Bloomer

After an unusually long and mild Indian Summer, Fall has finally fallen here in my valley.

A golden tunnel of ginkgo trees lines one walkway on campus. It is so gloriously exquisite that I want to soak in it so I can feel it on my skin. I want to bite into it so I can taste it. I want to be a part of it, to twist my branches and watch the air glow with my color, watch the sultry tango of my leaves from stem to ground.

I have a crick in my neck and the goofiest expression from leaning back and goggling. Simply stunning, this late bloomer of an Autumn.