{pretty, happy, funny, real} there's not much funny in being sick, but plenty of happy all the same

| a weekly capturing of contentment in everyday life |

This week was a long stretch of a miserable cold, bookended by a sweet trip to visit Alex at Rice last weekend and the impending celebration of Brian's diaconate ordination and Natalie's confirmation this weekend.  I'm on the mend and feeling especially grateful this morning. 

A few photos to practice contentment this week

| pretty |

A few signs of autumn around our house, featuring leaves mailed to us from New York over the years

| happy |

Originally, when we were first planning our visit, I told him I wanted to do something college-y for our last trip out while he's still a single man.  I wanted to do something like go to a football game or lecture, and that was the plan until it rained, and half of Texas flooded.  Not the half where the Rice football stadium, but the part we'd have to drive through to get to Rice.  So we missed the game and the famous author lecture, and we stayed home for delightful trick or treaters, instead.

This weekend, I was catching a serious cold, but we had one window of opportunity to go, and go we went.  The most college-y thing we did was buy ourselves Rice t-shirts in the college bookstore (finally, after 3 years!).  The true gift was 24 hours to spend face-to-face, talking about his semester, Houston politics and his future.  I was getting sicker by the minute, and it was worth every one.  

this smile says between the lines: my head weighs 200 pounds of sinus tension,
but I'm so happy to be with my son I don't even care

Saturday brunch at Paper Co, Ecclesia's on-site cafe.  Alex loves his church, and has been welcomed warmly by so many good people.  We toured the unconventional space -- a former paper warehouse in Houston's first ward, turned church building / cafe for the common good. I especially loved the prime gallery space along two hallways. (Unfortunately, I didn't record the name of this artist.)

This exhibit, One Voice, is brilliant.  Just brilliant.  I came home wishing to replicate it in Austin.  May gallery space open up on church walls across the land, and may they impress upon us once again the virtues of truth, goodness and beauty.

Serendipitously, we were able to share our meal with Mike, a friend of Alex's who happened to be at the cafe when we arrived.  Mike is witty, warm, and full of knowledge and stories.  He is part of the Ecclesia community and in a small group with Alex's roommates.  He also happens to be homeless.  I don't understand how all of those realities fit together, but I'm so glad we got to eat together and hear each other's stories.  In truth:  I liked that far better than a college football game, anyway.

| funny |

Speaking of college football, here's a facebook status re-cap of our drive home from Houston on Saturday afternoon.  I sincerely wish I'd thought to take a photo of Brian, standing at the checkout line of a ginormous Buc-ee's, bright orange sweatshirt (with blue trim, the exact colors of the opposing Auburn team that day) like a bulls-eye among the sea of Aggie maroon swarming around him.  I got a couple dirty looks for my Rice emblem, but that was nothing -- nothing, I tell you -- compared to the looks he got for his guilty orange sweatshirt.

Texas + College Football = No Joke (still, hilariously funny to me!)

| real |

 

Most of the week, in reality, has been about me being sick, and Natalie recovering from a season of debilitating migraine headaches.  We've been eating a migraine elimination diet, working from home, filling out college applications and drinking tea like it's our job.  Hard days can really end up being some of the sweetest, you know?

Have YOU captured any contentment this week? 

 I'd love to hear about it!

| Join in at P,H,F,R to see other wonderful people practicing contentment. |

7 Quick Takes: much joy during times of much sorrow

--- 1 ---

My sisters came to visit me in Austin!  Lots of people asked what we did with ourselves. We did do some fun things.  Mostly, though, we sat around and soaked in each others' presence.  My sister Kaley is the only sibling who hadn't yet visited me in Austin.  Her first few minutes here she sat in my front room and said "I haven't visited you in your own house for years.  Now I feel like I know you better."

Yes.  Come in and know me better, friend.

Only our grainy phone pictures, but I love this.  My sisters and me in my kitchen making soup on a plain old Saturday night.

Bliss.

--- 2 ---

This is not to say we ignored our great city.  We celebrated both Natalie and Kaley's birthdays with this checklist:  eat Tex-Mex, window shop (including Tamara's favorite store on the planet), buy candy, eat cupcakes.  Food played a major role in the day's celebration, I guess.

 I didn't take many pictures.  Here's one my cousin Natalie took of our girls' day on South Congress.

--- 3 ---

Please don't tell my niece it took me until Quick Take #3 to mention her.  She was, indeed, a highlight of the week.  She charmed all of us with her ready smile (sometimes more of a mischievous grin).  The girl is SIX MONTHS OLD and knows when we're pointing a camera at her!  She and Leo (our dog) kind of circled around each other at first, both wary of the Foreign Object in the room.  By the end of the week, though, they didn't like to be out of each other's presence.

May it be forever known that Uncle Brian and Aunt T first introduced our sweet Elise the existence of DOGS.  And Sesame Street.  (the classics, thank you very much).

In which, Ellie charms her cousin Alex.

--- 4 ---

Yes, it was fun having a baby in the house.  I'm grateful to several friends who made sure we had all the accoutrements needed for the modern baby.  I think it's probably good Alicia visited before her daughter becomes mobile.  Our house is not exactly baby-proof anymore.

For example....

--- 5 ---

Another favorite, ordinary being together moment: Saturday morning cartoons via the RocketGent's weekly curated offering of animated delight.  

Please notice that Ellie is paying more attention to Leo than the screen. 

--- 6 ---

I didn't mean to take up our whole conversation with stories about my sisters.  I guess there's other things going on in the world.  Like the devastation in the Philippines (which I can not even begin to wrap my head around).  Also, our dear friend Trey's funeral last week. My friend Margaret remembered the anniversary of her mother's passing on November 9. South Austin is mucking out from destructive flash floods.  Lord, please show mercy to your suffering children.

Christ have mercy... [from some of my online reading the past couple of weeks]

• On your suffering children living as strangers in a foreign land:  A Hospitality Not On My Own Terms by Cherith Fee Nordling at Missio Alliance

• On those without comforts of home, family, food:  Here's What Austin's Newest Housing for the Chronically Homeless Looks Like at KUT.org

• On those sitting in the presence of Grief and Death:  Still In the World at Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission

--- 7 ---

I love the beauty of this story -- subverting injustice with beauty. The Center for Work for Faith and Work commissioned the video tale for their Conference Humanizing Work.

For all my Northeast friends, Phoenix will be on exhibit at The Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York starting January 31.  Each of the two 12-ton sculptures will hang over the nave in perpetual flight.  Go and see. Please!

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A beauty and grace-filled weekend for us all, dear ones.

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

What I'm Into Lately, September 2013

In September I had the privilege of visiting Imagine Art in Austin two times.  Once when they shared table space and wi-fi so I could work on an article and once for the opening of their exhibit This Ability.  There is good work happening here!

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From the book pile

to see the book pile from 2011, click here / from 2012, click here

29  The Golden Apples of the Sun, by Ray Bradury  (Subterranean Press; 1990. 248 pages) 

My friend Laurel commented her current reading list on the July edition of this blog post.  Laurel's the kind of reader I want to be more like so I pretty much copy and pasted her book list into the online library catalog search bar.  

This was my favorite recommendation of them all.  I've never read Bradbury (for shame) and it's been way too long since I've read a compilation of short stories.  This was the perfect way to get back into both.

My favorites short stories from this title:  "The Golden Apples of the Sun", "The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind", "The Garbage Collector", "The Big Black and White Game"

Excerpt from "The Big Black and White Game" to demonstrate Bradbury's pithy and marvelous way of description:

"The people filled the stands behind the wire screen, waiting. Us kids, dripping from the lake, ran between the white cottages, past the resort hotel, screaming, and sat on the bleachers making wet bottom marks. The hot sun beat down through the tall oak trees around the baseball diamond. Our fathers and mothers, in golf pants and light summer dresses, scolded us and made us sit still."

30  The War of the Worlds, by H. G. Wells, illustrated by Edward Gorey  (New York Review of Books, 1960. 251 pages) 

Another recommendation from my friend Laurel.  Not that I'd never heard of this book before, just never considered reading it.  Even though the plot is intriguing, my favorite part of this book is the illustrations by Edward Gorey.  The cover on my library copy is so, so fun. 

Also, anyone out there confuse H. G. Wells, Orson Welles and George Orwell?

31  The Best Spiritual Writing 2013, edited by Philip Zaleski with introduction by Stephen Prothero  (Penguin Books, 2012. 235 pages) 

I always think I'm going to like these types of anthologies more than I actually do.  Still, I love essays.  Always have, always will.

32  Horoscopes for the Dead: Poems, by Billy Collins (Random House; 2011. 103 pages) 

I'm not sure anything by the former US poet laureate will match the first crush I had on his work in Sailing Alone Around the Room.  At the same time I know I'll never get tired of this man's voice.  He manages to combine a wit -- both friendly and dry -- with splashes of boyish imagination that allows the reader to feel like they're getting in on his joke.  He's a friendly poet -- not one to leave his reader feeling dull and out of the loop.  

I like his words, but every once in a while I wish he'd reach a little bit higher -- deeper? -- for the transcendence washing over all of us.

One of my favorites from this collection:  "Cemetery Ride"

My new copper-colored bicycle

is looking pretty fine under a blues ky

as I pedal along one of the sandy paths

in the Palm Cemetery here in Florida

wheeling past the headstones of the Lyons,

the Campbells, the Dunlaps, and the Davenports,

Arthur and Ethel who outlived him by 11 years

I slow down even more to notice,

but not so much as to fall sideways on the ground.

And here's a guy named Happy Grant

next to his wife Jean in their endless bed.

Annie Sue Simms is right there and sounds

a lot more fun than Theodosia S. Hawley.

And good afternoon, Emily Polasek

and to you too, George and Jane Cooper,

facing each other in profile, two sides of a coin.

I wish I could take you all for a ride

in my wire basket on this glorious April day,

not a thing as simple as your name, Bill Smith,

even trickier than Clarence Augustus Coddington.

Then how about just you, Enid Parker?

Would you like to gather up your voluminous skirts

and ride sidesaddle on the crossbar

and tell me what happened between 1863 and 1931?

I'll even let you ring the silver bell.

But if you're not ready, I can always ask

Mary Brennan to rise form her long sleep

beneath the swaying gray beards of Spanish moss

and ride with me along these halls of the dead 

so I can listen to her strange laughter

as some crows flap in the blue overhead

and the spokes of my wheels catch the dazzling sun.

33  Tell It Slant: a conversation on the language of jesus in his stories and prayers, by Eugene H. Peterson (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2008. 270 pages, plus appendix and index) 

Classic Eugene Peterson, helping us take a new, more lighthearted look at the parables Jesus taught in the New Testament.

34  Little Black Sheep: A Memoir, by Ashley Cleveland  (David C. Cook, September 2013. 212 pages) 

A few Sunday evenings ago, our friends Jodi and Bernie came for dinner.  I asked Jodi how she'd spent her weekend.  She told me she got her pre-ordered copy of Grammy award-winning singer/songwriter Ashley Cleveland's memoir and couldn't put it down.  I said "Oh, I'd love to borrow it".  A few days later Jodi texted me, "What's your address?  I'm ordering you your own copy of the book.  Can't wait to talk with you about it!"  The day I picked it up, I read it start to finish in one Saturday morning, texting Jodi intermittently through the entire thing.

So, I've read lots of memoirs.  I've read some that I enjoyed and some that frustrated me.  I'm sure part of the reason I was drawn into Little Black Sheep is that -- essentially -- I was reading the story in community with Jodi.  (also, here sister Laurel plays a special role in Ashley Cleveland's life and I loved hearing that part of the story).  At the same time, this memoir hits some important marks on my list of criteria for a good memoir:  transparent without self-indulgent translucency by the author, a framework that keeps the reader clear about times, dates and places (in this case Ms. Cleveland takes the story back and forth -- like her own life -- from East to West Coast), enough clarity about the realities of both suffering and joy, and special attention to the number of words the reader can absorb about this particular life.  (for example, some life stories absorb beautifully 900 pages, some should probably stick to 150).

I recommend the book heartily, and am so grateful for the redemptive work of Christ.  Thank you, Jodi!

In September I enjoyed browsing through the following books:

• You Learn by Living: Eleven Keys for A More Fulfilling Life by Eleanor Roosevelt

• Life in a Medieval Village by Frances Gies and Joseph Gies

• Change By Design: How Design Thinking Transforms Organizations and Inspires Innovation by Tim Brown

• The Kitchen Counter Cooking School: How a Few Simple Lessons Transformed Nine Culinary Novices Into Fearless Home Cooks by Kathleen Flinn:  I actually listened to this book on CD while driving back and forth to work during the month.  It's not necessarily the best way to enjoy a book that includes recipes for each chapter, but sill an enjoyable book.

.....

Movies & TV 

Beasts of the Southern Wild

The only thing better than discovering a film that moves you is to have a friend welcome you to enjoy a film that they love.  The last weekend in September we spent an evening with friends, watching a film they love.  Our hostess explained that the story of six-year-old Hushpuppy fighting to survive not only Hurricane Katrina, but also poverty, neglect, and hunger helped her articulate some of her own painful growing-up experience.  Of course, the aurochs are magical realism, symbolizing any number of predators a child fears.  My favorite moment in the film,  Hushpuppy stares the beast down, looks him in the eye and whispers:  "You're my friend, kind of."  Something about that I know to be true.

Other movies we watched in September:  

Mud
The Help

On TV (via Amazon.com or Netflix):

The Newsroom  
The War (started this seven-part series while I was sick in bed for the week.  I'm so glad I watched it.  I'd never really understood World War II chronologically before.  Also, when is someone going to cinematically tell the story of the Japanese Americans we threw into interment camps for years?)

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In my ears 

Falling in love with the release of Jason Harrod's newest album Highliner.  Buy your copy of the album here.

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Art I'm Loving (Follow me on Pinterest here.)

Published on Sep 12, 2013

NEW BEGINNINGS
New York City Ballet presents NEW BEGINNINGS on September 12, 2013. Filmed at sunrise on the 57th floor of 4WTC in lower Manhattan, this short film captures an extraordinary and moving performance of Christopher Wheeldon's After the Rain. It is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, and a tribute to the future of the city that New York City Ballet calls home. 

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In the kitchen

I made this cake for the wedding reception of two lovely people.  And, really, what a great idea, right?  Friends donated their favorite cakes for a buffet of goodness at the reception.  Oh, my, this was yummy....

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Random thing making me happy 

Some kind and generous friends gave Brian and me a little getaway to Horseshoe Bay, TX.  I spent one entire afternoon doing this.  Ahhhh.....

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On the Blog (Get This Sacramental Life delivered by email.) 

Top 5 posts in September

5.  bad news, good news, Fox news and more!

4.  how our family spent 60 hours together in a minivan and lived to tell about it: 20 conversation prompts

3.   the time we got mac & cheese for a wedding gift [a mini story]

2.  how our family spent 60 hours together in a minivan and lived to tell about it: 6 roadtrip playlists

--- September's top post ---

1.  throwing in the towel on my sinuses, summer-er in Austin, unexpected mail and more!

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So, what about you? What's in your book pile? 

What art, film, song has captured your imagination? 

What are you pinning or cooking or planning? 

Share in the comments, won't you?

For more “What I’m Into” posts, head over to Leigh’s blog