I tried to keep my eyes open for something today, something that would trigger a long-past memory. Instead, at every turn, the memories brought to the fore were all recent, remnants of full days with good friends. So, a few glimpses: *** The voices singing a hymn this morning from the opening of Bible study at church reminded me of […]
A Favorite View
There’s a spot along the North Carolina/Tennessee border where the mountains grow more angular, as if they’ve sucked in their breath. Their spines arch across the sky and all their rib bones show under their skin of trees. I’ve decided it’s my favorite view on the drive to Nashville. Evidently I’ve driven that route enough times to feel like a […]
The Birth of a Song
[Editorial note: I’m kinda breaking my own rules for the #write31days challenge today; this one isn’t an sight or moment that recalls a memory, but just the moment itself—the anecdote was too good to dilute by tying it to another memory. I’ll blame Jonathan Rogers, who asked the other day why I need to connect the moments to memories (I […]
Kneading
I spent an hour or so this afternoon crushing graham crackers. If you’ve never done it, crushing graham crackers is harder than it looks. I will blame the shortness of this post on my tired hands that don’t want to type, rather than on the fact that I’m plumb tuckered out. There was no rolling pin and only flimsy plastic […]
Backdrop
I’ve spent a significant portion of the past two days sitting in a sanctuary at a church in Nashville which I can only describe as “warm.” It is a building which seems to stretch its arms out in welcome. The older parts of it are made of wood that holds the patina of the years. In the sanctuary itself, a […]
Exchange
In our study this week, my Bible study group looked at the passage in Romans that says, “They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Rom. 1:25). I wrote a note in the margin of my book: Jane Eyre. I adore the novel Jane Eyre. I have multiple copies and […]
Flowers in October
I’ve been smelling it for over a week now. I took a trip out to my car to get a phone charger the other day and I found myself slowing my pace just so that I could spend more time breathing in the scent. And I couldn’t figure out what it was. October’s been glorious in Charlotte. I’ve put in […]
Words, Words, Words
I learned a new word today. I love learning new words, particularly when they’re multi-syllabic and fun to say. Today’s word was “concatenation.” Both multi-syllabic and fun (and defined as a series of interconnected things or events). Evidently, listening to NPR does make you smarter. It reminded me of some of my favorite words of the past and my adventures […]
The Musicians of Bremen
I hope the designer of the t-shirt had the musicians of Bremen in mind. I like to believe we’re still cultured enough to remember our folk stories.
The Phone Booth
I stopped at a mountain gas station this morning, between hillsides spread with leaves about to turn spotted with the scarlet flashes of the precocious maples. At the corner of the building, empty of its original instrument, was a phone booth. I was reminded of the path from the road up to my university campus. The campus, prior to being […]