Over the Moon in Aptos, California
I was surprised by joy this morning! Once again an unexpected aesthetic experience was downloaded into my memory database.
Before sunrise I awoke to my bedroom flooded with intense moonlight. Curiosity drew me out onto the terrace where I saw a stunning sight. A huge lustrous full moon, hung low on the horizon, was throwing down moonbeans on Monterey Bay so powerfully that the entire inlet in front of our condo was a sparkling shimmering mass of tremulous movement.
Mesmerized by the loveliness of it all, appreciation welled up in my soul for the gift and then, quite naturally, for the Giver of the gift. The moon, a natural satellite of the earth, is only visible because of reflected light from the sun. In Psalm 136, we read that God, in demonstrating His everlasting lovingkindness, created the sun to rule the day and the moon and stars to rule the night. He created this breathtaking display of splendor for me to delight in.
I added this new experience to others already etched on my soul. There was the time I walked home alone in softly falling snow after an afternoon movie. And, the time I watched a fairyland of fireflies from the upstairs window of my parent's Iowa home. And, the time I was entranced by orange and red leaves falling like rain in Arlington Cemetery. All of these memories have delighted my aesthetic senses and aroused a tremendous sense of wonderment and deep appreciation.
Who is this that grows like the dawn,
As beautiful as the full moon,
As pure as the sun,
As awesome as an army with banners?
Song of Solomon 6:10 (NASB)
Oh Lord, keep my eyes open and my soul ready to receive all that you have for me to appreciate in this beautiful world of Yours!
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Monday, June 22, 2009
I've been thinking about romance...
The Lover's Hermitage
Darryl and I just celebrated our 39th anniversary. You have heard this one before - but I cannot believe I have been married for 39 years! What happened to that little 18 year old girl standing in an apartment in Van Nuys, California, green off the Iowa farm?
Well, she invested an inordinate amount of time and energy in creating a home - a kind of hermitage - for her husband over those years. In fact, although a well-kept physical home is extremely comforting and relaxing, an emotional home is vitally more important. A hermitage, as Webster defines it, is a secluded residence, a private retreat or hideaway. Creating an emotional hermitage for a husband is a terrific metaphor for the most romantic kind of homemaking.
A few years ago I ran across a beautiful poem by Mike Mason describing his relationship with his new wife. You see, Mike did not plan on ever marrying, but God directed him along a different path and he fell in love. When Mike married, he raised the bar of romantic married love by putting pen to paper. Here is what he wrote:
Love, you are my hermitage, my dwelling forever.
Just as a happy bachelor may aspire to be a hermit,
So as your husband do I dream of being more married.
Your body in a path leading through a golden wood;
Your love is a clearing in the center of the forest.
Here I have built my home, here in you alone.
With you I know a solitude deeper than my own.
One table, one rocking chair by the hearth of you -
And in your face a window brighter than the sky!
Are not your arms a shelter made of all my longings?
How gladly shall I spend my life in the cool still hush of you!
Your words are quieter than my thoughts.
Your moods are the shade beneath dancing poplars.
When you smile I'm warmed like earth in the sun.
Your laugh is the brook at my doorstep.
Gentler are you than breath, much stranger than death.
Just to touch your hair is more peaceful than sleep.
Where else could I die but in your brown eyes?
Surely all my wandering finds its end in you.
Love, you are my hermitage, my dwelling forever.
The challenge of this poem is focusing on what kind of a person do I need to be to warrant this type of breathtaking tribute? I want to be my best romantic self.
Darryl and I just celebrated our 39th anniversary. You have heard this one before - but I cannot believe I have been married for 39 years! What happened to that little 18 year old girl standing in an apartment in Van Nuys, California, green off the Iowa farm?
Well, she invested an inordinate amount of time and energy in creating a home - a kind of hermitage - for her husband over those years. In fact, although a well-kept physical home is extremely comforting and relaxing, an emotional home is vitally more important. A hermitage, as Webster defines it, is a secluded residence, a private retreat or hideaway. Creating an emotional hermitage for a husband is a terrific metaphor for the most romantic kind of homemaking.
A few years ago I ran across a beautiful poem by Mike Mason describing his relationship with his new wife. You see, Mike did not plan on ever marrying, but God directed him along a different path and he fell in love. When Mike married, he raised the bar of romantic married love by putting pen to paper. Here is what he wrote:
Love, you are my hermitage, my dwelling forever.
Just as a happy bachelor may aspire to be a hermit,
So as your husband do I dream of being more married.
Your body in a path leading through a golden wood;
Your love is a clearing in the center of the forest.
Here I have built my home, here in you alone.
With you I know a solitude deeper than my own.
One table, one rocking chair by the hearth of you -
And in your face a window brighter than the sky!
Are not your arms a shelter made of all my longings?
How gladly shall I spend my life in the cool still hush of you!
Your words are quieter than my thoughts.
Your moods are the shade beneath dancing poplars.
When you smile I'm warmed like earth in the sun.
Your laugh is the brook at my doorstep.
Gentler are you than breath, much stranger than death.
Just to touch your hair is more peaceful than sleep.
Where else could I die but in your brown eyes?
Surely all my wandering finds its end in you.
Love, you are my hermitage, my dwelling forever.
The challenge of this poem is focusing on what kind of a person do I need to be to warrant this type of breathtaking tribute? I want to be my best romantic self.
Friday, June 12, 2009
I've been thinking about brainstorming...
Brainstorming is Loads of Fun!
Simple, fun and effective, you can brainstorm alone or with a group.
1) State your question. It can be about any decision you want to make. For instance, "How can I solve the problem of...?"
2) Pop out as many ideas as possible, as fast as you can. Include any and all weird ones. Remember, most new ideas sound ridiculous at first. Write down every idea as it comes.
3) No criticism or comment about any of the ideas is allowed. Being critical inhibits the imagination and crushes creative thinking. The goal here is to quiet your inner critic when it sneers, "That won't work," or "What a silly idea," or "That's already been done." The point is to postpone judgment in order to let ideas flow freely.
4) Generate as many ideas as possible.
5) When you've exhausted all possible ideas, sit back and look them over. Take some time to turn them around, combine, adapt, rearrange and play with them. Even the silly ones will contain the germ of a good idea. Have fun with the process. Laugh and play with it; humor triggers creativity.
6) Choose the best ideas to make your decision.
The benefits of brainstorming are enormous. Use it in your work or in your personal life. You'll find it not only helps you to live, think and work more effectively, as well as make better, smarter decisions, but it is also just plain fun!
Simple, fun and effective, you can brainstorm alone or with a group.
1) State your question. It can be about any decision you want to make. For instance, "How can I solve the problem of...?"
2) Pop out as many ideas as possible, as fast as you can. Include any and all weird ones. Remember, most new ideas sound ridiculous at first. Write down every idea as it comes.
3) No criticism or comment about any of the ideas is allowed. Being critical inhibits the imagination and crushes creative thinking. The goal here is to quiet your inner critic when it sneers, "That won't work," or "What a silly idea," or "That's already been done." The point is to postpone judgment in order to let ideas flow freely.
4) Generate as many ideas as possible.
5) When you've exhausted all possible ideas, sit back and look them over. Take some time to turn them around, combine, adapt, rearrange and play with them. Even the silly ones will contain the germ of a good idea. Have fun with the process. Laugh and play with it; humor triggers creativity.
6) Choose the best ideas to make your decision.
The benefits of brainstorming are enormous. Use it in your work or in your personal life. You'll find it not only helps you to live, think and work more effectively, as well as make better, smarter decisions, but it is also just plain fun!
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