I’m so appreciative every week of your work, how you “bring it”! Love it. Your use of the voyage / ship metaphor here is so perfect.
What you share about your reading adventures reminds me of the Little House series we used to read to our girls. They are 19 and 22 now... we still talk about the books and remember certain passages and hap…
I’m so appreciative every week of your work, how you “bring it”! Love it. Your use of the voyage / ship metaphor here is so perfect.
What you share about your reading adventures reminds me of the Little House series we used to read to our girls. They are 19 and 22 now... we still talk about the books and remember certain passages and happenings. Talk about having no choice but to live in reality!
Other thoughts brought on by this wonderful piece:
None of this DEI stuff actually calls to any of us... it can’t. That’s not who we are, it’s not what “being” is about. I remember reading Mere Christianity when I was in college... I love CS Lewis , and others will remember better than I will , but he describes in that book a sense of “longing” that is part of the human experience. We don’t long for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion... we long for the fulfillment of what is unique in each of us. For me it manifest in a deep sadness and, yes, longing as I would walk or drive through or look out the window upon the beauty and wonder of the natural world from my “job” indoors or my commute to and from... nothing short of the fulfillment of my soul pulled me to where I am now and what I’m doing. We all need to listen and follow that pull, but first we must learn to hear.
Steadfast.
What a word. What a world view. So much there... it’s more than perseverance or “getting through”... it implies a foundation, a rock on which your feet are placed.
I accepted as true a long time ago an idea that I try to remember and hold on to everyday. While I did not initially accept it, over time I came to see its truth and the power it contains. It’s the idea that everything present in your life was brought there by you. Good or bad, healthy or detrimental, positive or negative... it’s all on you, always. One way or another. It is simply not possible to ever last long in a mindset of victim or helpless pawn of forces outside your control coming from this place.
I still struggle.. we all do. There are still things I want to change and relationships that are not where I want them... but I’m grateful to know that’s all on me. There is peace in that, peace and agency.
Last thought: who you surround yourself with also matters so much. What you see, hear, read, and experience every day. None of us are “there yet”. That’s one of the things I love so much about this community. A bunch of strivers up in here! So thanks again Tara... you are practicing what you “preach” in a big way and that’s another thing missing as we all look around these days, integrity.
Not to mention giving me, personally, this week a sense of the wonder and joy of snuggling to sleep a child born to one of my own children. ❤️
I love your thoughts shared here, Joe. Wouldn't it be wonderful to sit under the sun, all of us seekers and just chat away on all these things?
Agency is a big, beautiful, powerful word. I see that word as a gift, but many see it as one out of reach for so many. What a thing to think so little of another human being.
OH, Little House! I love those books. It reminds me of the other weekend when I was antique shopping with my friend and I told her that when I was a little girl I was given "Tasha Tudor's Christmas". It was an illustrated children's book, if I'm remembering correctly. I remember reading about the homemade gifts they made each other and being absolutely enamoured in the simplicity and wholesomeness of their lives and their connections to one another. The Little House books did the same for me. It seems now these books are our evidence and guide to lives pre-screen when children were so much more capable of things beyond being entertained.
Thank you for articulating that feeling that's in there, that hunger. I think many people see that as something to squash (as if that can ever really happen). But when we listen, and then act, home is only over yonder.
I am in complete alignment with your thoughts on what comes into and out of our lives. And in everything, gifts, sometimes very painful, sometimes exploding with joy. I so enjoyed learning from your comment here, too. It's so wonderful to have these exchanges.
Just came to chime in on Tasha Tudor. I don’t know how I found pictures of her and her property on the internet, but let’s just say I fell down a rabbit hole of aesthetic bliss. She is my style and vibe icon 😁 I know she was a children’s book illustrator and author and I’d love to find some of her books.
Karla, you know I didn't even know she had books on gardening or an "aesthetic vibe". It was a friend of mine who told me that. I had grown up thinking she was just a kid's book author. You're right, her stuff is so darn dreamy!
I’m so appreciative every week of your work, how you “bring it”! Love it. Your use of the voyage / ship metaphor here is so perfect.
What you share about your reading adventures reminds me of the Little House series we used to read to our girls. They are 19 and 22 now... we still talk about the books and remember certain passages and happenings. Talk about having no choice but to live in reality!
Other thoughts brought on by this wonderful piece:
None of this DEI stuff actually calls to any of us... it can’t. That’s not who we are, it’s not what “being” is about. I remember reading Mere Christianity when I was in college... I love CS Lewis , and others will remember better than I will , but he describes in that book a sense of “longing” that is part of the human experience. We don’t long for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion... we long for the fulfillment of what is unique in each of us. For me it manifest in a deep sadness and, yes, longing as I would walk or drive through or look out the window upon the beauty and wonder of the natural world from my “job” indoors or my commute to and from... nothing short of the fulfillment of my soul pulled me to where I am now and what I’m doing. We all need to listen and follow that pull, but first we must learn to hear.
Steadfast.
What a word. What a world view. So much there... it’s more than perseverance or “getting through”... it implies a foundation, a rock on which your feet are placed.
I accepted as true a long time ago an idea that I try to remember and hold on to everyday. While I did not initially accept it, over time I came to see its truth and the power it contains. It’s the idea that everything present in your life was brought there by you. Good or bad, healthy or detrimental, positive or negative... it’s all on you, always. One way or another. It is simply not possible to ever last long in a mindset of victim or helpless pawn of forces outside your control coming from this place.
I still struggle.. we all do. There are still things I want to change and relationships that are not where I want them... but I’m grateful to know that’s all on me. There is peace in that, peace and agency.
Last thought: who you surround yourself with also matters so much. What you see, hear, read, and experience every day. None of us are “there yet”. That’s one of the things I love so much about this community. A bunch of strivers up in here! So thanks again Tara... you are practicing what you “preach” in a big way and that’s another thing missing as we all look around these days, integrity.
Not to mention giving me, personally, this week a sense of the wonder and joy of snuggling to sleep a child born to one of my own children. ❤️
I CANT WAIT!!!!!
I love your thoughts shared here, Joe. Wouldn't it be wonderful to sit under the sun, all of us seekers and just chat away on all these things?
Agency is a big, beautiful, powerful word. I see that word as a gift, but many see it as one out of reach for so many. What a thing to think so little of another human being.
OH, Little House! I love those books. It reminds me of the other weekend when I was antique shopping with my friend and I told her that when I was a little girl I was given "Tasha Tudor's Christmas". It was an illustrated children's book, if I'm remembering correctly. I remember reading about the homemade gifts they made each other and being absolutely enamoured in the simplicity and wholesomeness of their lives and their connections to one another. The Little House books did the same for me. It seems now these books are our evidence and guide to lives pre-screen when children were so much more capable of things beyond being entertained.
Thank you for articulating that feeling that's in there, that hunger. I think many people see that as something to squash (as if that can ever really happen). But when we listen, and then act, home is only over yonder.
I am in complete alignment with your thoughts on what comes into and out of our lives. And in everything, gifts, sometimes very painful, sometimes exploding with joy. I so enjoyed learning from your comment here, too. It's so wonderful to have these exchanges.
Have a beautiful day.
Just came to chime in on Tasha Tudor. I don’t know how I found pictures of her and her property on the internet, but let’s just say I fell down a rabbit hole of aesthetic bliss. She is my style and vibe icon 😁 I know she was a children’s book illustrator and author and I’d love to find some of her books.
I read Rascal as a kid and I need to find a copy for my 10 year old son, whose favourite animals are raccoons. He would love it!
Karla there's a gazillion used versions on Abe Books or Thrift Books!
Karla, you know I didn't even know she had books on gardening or an "aesthetic vibe". It was a friend of mine who told me that. I had grown up thinking she was just a kid's book author. You're right, her stuff is so darn dreamy!