Good Friday

From The Rabbit Room (emphasis mine):

(See Matthew 27:1-61, Mark 15:1-47, Luke 23:1-56, John 18:28-19:42.)

"On Thursday night in Gethsemane, Jesus was arrested—betrayed by one of His own disciples and abandoned by the others. The Chief Priests and the Sanhedrin called for secret trials in the dead of night, and the verdict handed down was that Jesus would be crucified. This was something the Roman Prefect, Pontius Pilate, would have to execute. And reluctantly, he did.

After a severe beating, Jesus was nailed to a cross where He’d remain for six hours until dead.

Never before or since had more been lost and gained at the same time as at Jesus’ crucifixion.

The world gained the atoning sacrifice of Christ. But for those present, either the significance of the moment was lost on them or their hearts broke because the One they believed to be the Savior of the world was dying at the hands of Rome. They couldn’t stop it and they didn’t realize it was for them. They hoped in Him, and though He had told them He would suffer many things and rise three days later, (Mk 8:31)how could they have possibly known this was what He meant?"

Today my mind keeps wandering to those who were present at the crucifixion. The very moment they were given life itself; the very moment they received the complete and unmerited mercy and grace of eternity seemed, by all accounts, to be the single most devastating event of their lives.

I don't understand it, but I'm so, so thankful that His ways are not mine, that from sorrow will come song, and from tomb, breath and life.

This poem...oh, this poem. I'm sharing it with my kids today. Risky? Yes. Do I care? No.

A Night Poem (For Easter)
Andrew Peterson

I lie in bed these sweet few days
When the windows yet are open
And the weather yet is fine,
And love to hear the dead of night
Announce its living presence
With hoot and croak and creeping vine.

I love the knowledge that for years
As I have waited on the bench
Beneath the juniper tree,
And paid such close attention,
There is an owl I’ve never seen
An owl, I know, who watches me.

I love the sound of secret things,
I love to hear their nearness,
And to feel their wildness, too.
(Three days ago we sowed the seeds
And every hour I check the dirt
For seedlings pushing through.)

I lie in bed awake, alert,
Aware of the God of the Garden.
I sense in the seed a promise,
An unfolding resurrection
In the furrowed row, in soil
And root, in husk and humus.

I sense an ancient heart alive
Who haunts these moonlit acres,
Blessing, bringing life from death,
Dawn from darkness, song from sorrow.
The night owl swoops, the zephyr sighs;
I hear within the tomb: a breath.

summer book list

Here is, give or take one or two, my selection of reads for this summer.

Now, whether or not I get through all of these in six weeks is highly questionable, but here's what I'd like to aim for, in no particular order:

1. When Knighthood was in Flower by Edwin Caskoden (or, Charles Major)

I'm excited about this book because 1) It is the story of Mary Tudor, the younger sister of Henry VIII and the courtly commoner Charles Brandon and 2) I don't think I have ever read a copy of a book this old - this book is copyrighted 1898 and it was a Christmas gift to a Mabel Miller in 1899. I found it on eBay for pennies, and something tells me this copy is worth far more than what I paid for it.

2. The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

I think this book has the kind of quirk in it that I dearly love (and it's a children's book, go figure) - the four main characters - two of whom are named Constance and Sticky (I rest my case) - travel to an isolated school where children are being trained by a criminal mastermind to participate in his schemes to take over the world. Bottom line: Any book that has a place in it called the Whispering Gallery has my attention.

3.

Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott

Because it's Louisa May Alcott. Since this is the sequel to Eight Cousins, perhaps I should read that one first.

4. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

This one's been on the shelf calling my name for awhile now. I fell in love with the cover of this one and I hope the inside lives up to it.

5. Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich

This one seems really interesting: An upper middle class journalist tries to live on the wages of unskilled jobs in three different locations in the US. The author describes her experiences and tries to relate them to a larger frame of reference by laying out statistics about the US.

6. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

John Ames, a 76 year old preacher in Iowa, is writing a letter to his 7 year old son to leave to him an account of his life. It's a meditation on fathers and children, particularly sons, on faith, and on the imperfectability of man.

7. Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How it Changed America by John M. Barry

I started reading this one at the very end of last summer, and was surprised by how much I liked it. Sadly I had to put it down in August and have yet to pick it back up so I'm excited to finish it this summer. It's a mix of social history, politics, and science - sounds pretty boring, I know - but what could very easily be a pretty dry account of the 1927 flooding of the Mississippi River turns out to be (at least in the first few chapters) a really engaging story of the transformation of American society.

8. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

Because it's what I assigned for next year's 7th graders to read this summer. And I have never read it. Please don't tell anyone.

hither and thither

Yep. Still here.

In short, here's the latest:

1. Dodging lightning bolts and straight line winds at least once a week

2. Starting a new skincare regimen (I didn't really have one before? Oh. That is correct.) because my derm said these horrifying words to me, "You know, you're nearly 30...it's time for you to think about aging when you pick skin products."

3. Mad Men, seasons 1-4 Not sure how much this is worth since I don't watch much TV at all, but I'll make the claim that this show has the best cast of characters of any show in the past three decades at least.

4. As usual, the wrangling of many 12- year-olds I'm trying very hard to really enjoy these personalities these last few weeks. Five and one day, to be exact.

5. Virtual conference webinar series Five things to say about this: 1) huge headphones 2) web cam 3) national viewership 4) adhesive mustache 5) I am in WAY over my head

6. Frozen dinners Mostly as a result of #5. I feel very icky health-wise.

7. Birthdays! Holly & Nita both had birthdays this month, and we celebrated last weekend. So fun.

I think Nita looks a little like a Who in this picture

The birthday girls

8. Summer reading list Sadly, I don't do much recreational reading from August-May so I try to pack in a lot of good reads during the summer weeks. I'm working on my list for this summer and I plan to kick off the reading a little early this year. I'll be back soon with my completed list.

In the meantime, have you read anything really good lately? I'd love some recommendations!