Bridget and I had a gallivant. It was great!
We left the house here in Central Massachusetts on Father's Day (sorry, Chief!*) and headed west. We camped out all the way to Utah and then headed home via Suki's new house in Colorado and then on to our dear friends located in strategic spots along the trek back, in St. Louis (Mary Elizabeth!) and western PA (Shyla!). Amazing how you really can drive in a pretty much straight line 21+ hours from the Rockies!
*He wanted to come, but didn't want to do so much driving, and ended up having lots of interviews about his new book, Contagious Faith (affiliate link)/ We went with his blessing, although he missed us and the feeling was mutual.
I hope to post some pics on Instagram, and Bridget is getting started with her posting. Things are busy here because Deirdre and her family have bought a house, not far from us, and Rosie and her family are coming up to New England for the year and are already here taking some visiting time before getting settled. Captain (now Major) Pepper is studying at the Naval War College and we are super excited to have them nearby in Rhode Island.
So I just have these few pics right now, and want to ask you to go over to Happy Despite Them to be sure you are connected to me by email from there (as well as here). Google ditched the feedburner connection (great timing, eh? Just as I got started). But I have a new method of hunting you down, so please cooperate!
Also a reminder about God Has No Grandchildren (affiliate link), my book about the Church's teaching on marriage: I will do my best to meet virtually with your reading group! One spot left!
And, my book that collects all the collective wisdom here into three volumes, The Summa Domestica: Order and Wonder in the Home, is at the press! So stand by for updates on that! I can't wait to show you the gorgeous covers and to chat about everything I wrote about. Of course, now I feel like I left so much out… maybe in Heaven we will be able to go over all the things. A friend said, “Maybe you can have a post about what you forgot” and that was funny.
However, I may keep my sporadic pace for the foreseeable future, for which I apologize in advance. To be honest, this platform has become cumbersome to use. Why are updates always the worst? But I promise to do my best!
bits & pieces
- Excellent article about lighting in churches. I think the author reflexively mentions LEDs, and should perhaps think more about that idea, but overall, this systematic examination of how light is most effective for worship will help people make decisions with a better understanding of the particular goals they need to have in mind.
- Michael Ward's favorite seven C. S. Lewis writings. Of course I agree, but I would also mention Transpositions, an essay that explains a lot.
from the archives
- If you have a chance to send your child to chant camp, seize it! Chant is one of those things in life that is lastingly formative (like learning Euclid and grammar).
- The flip side of chant in liturgy (or rather, downstream from it) is the culture of folk and traditional music. Don't let your children be formed by faux folk music, whether secular or churchy! In the past, people taught their children how to dance and what to sing, passing along wholesome, simple music and steps that retain their connection to tradition, even when they are newly composed. Somehow we need to recover all the healthy repertoire of songs and hymns. I'm going to say it: what we know as “Praise and Worship” music has a cost to it, as does reverting to top 40s from our own childhoods (or our parents'!). Perhaps they have their place, but we shouldn't allow them to be the default formation for our children's experience of singing together spontaneously in groups around the bonfire or in the car.
liturgical living
Saint Felicity and her Seven Sons
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Jennifer says
What a great trip! I’m so happy you are going to keep posting, even if sporadically. Can’t wait to oder your book. Happy, busy summertime to you and your family.
Jennifer says
ugh….’ORDER your book’. I have a new (to me) laptop and the keyboard is just different enough that I am typo-ing something fierce.
Emily says
I can’t WAIT for the book!!
Sue W says
Did you visit any “Little House” sites along the way? I have always wanted to make a Laura tour and visit all of her homesites. I’m not getting any younger, so maybe better plan this trip…
Kerry says
Great update about your trip! Looking forward to your book.
Mrs. Bee says
Welcome back! Look how Sukie’s boys have grown!! Camping is not for me… can we still be friends??
Too much light in American churches is one of my pet peeves – it’s either ugly modern architecture with a lot of plain glass, or excessive artificial light, but the effect is the same and it definitely hinders recollection in prayer. One gets a lot of natural light in many old churches, too, but there is usually a lot of architectural play between areas flooded with light and areas that are still quite dark: the pictures of St. Sophia in the article are a great example. But light everywhere makes me feel like you can’t escape, you will be noticed, each of us becoming a distraction to the others. One can’t imagine the publican making his humble confession in a place inundated with light, one senses that he needed and sought a dark, quiet corner – we need them in our churches too!
It feels great to know the book will soon be out! I expect you will be flooded with questions here on the blog and everywhere, so I’m hoping you could set up a regular feature to answer them in a somewhat regular basis, and in answering you will have the opportunity to add what was left out in the book – or at least some of it 🙂 Just keep in mind your social media-free readers, please, and don’t stop blogging!