Happy solstice!
Posts in: Memories
One of the best things in my life is Rachel’s bread. It’s been ages since we last bought bread from a store. This is honey oat whole wheat.
I’ve been in the ER with mom since 7am today. Likely a bad episode of vertigo but they’re doing tests to make sure it’s nothing more. At one point, apropos of nothing, a voice I hadn’t heard before suddenly said “the kingdom of heaven is like unto a treasure hidden in a field.” It became quickly obvious that it was a woman reading to her husband. But the unexpectedness and the setting made it feel like a moment of grace in a tiring day.
Future Jeremy: if you ever get the “oh my, my lord” earworm again, this is its source. “Shooby” by Nicole C. Mullen
This morning, pumping gas at the station on the edge of our neighborhood, I felt again what I’ve sometimes felt over the past few years as I’ve turned toward my particular place, and learned to love it warts and all. One of Wendell Berry’s phrases came to mind: “it all turns on affection”:
For humans to have a responsible relationship to the world, they must imagine their places in it. To have a place, to live and belong in a place, to live from a place without destroying it, we must imagine it. By imagination we see it illuminated by its own unique character and by our love for it. By imagination we recognize with sympathy the fellow members, human and nonhuman, with whom we share our place. By that local experience we see the need to grant a sort of preemptive sympathy to all the fellow members, the neighbours, with whom we share the world. As imagination enables sympathy, sympathy enables affection. And it is in affection that we find the possibility of a neighbourly, kind, and conserving economy.
April vacation
I’m back to work after taking last week off–and I’m delaying dealing with all of these messages by writing this post. So what did I do? I made good progress on the chair I’m refinishing. I used a couple of rounds of citristrip, which worked well on the old paint. That was followed by hours of scraping, basically. It’s not done, but it’s in pretty good shape at this point.
Darcy took some photos today during our trip to Madison, IN. A great little town, if you’re ever looking for something to do for a day in southeastern Indiana. We usually go at least once a year.
ChatGPT, make us look like we’re in a Studio Ghibli movie.
If all goes as planned, I’ll be visiting the (Wendell) Berry Center in Kentucky on Friday. I’ll probably also visit Port Royal, his hometown and the inspiration for the fictional Port William.
One week until vacation. We’ll mostly stay around home. Maybe one day down to Madison, IN. Maybe a solo day trip. Mostly just not thinking about work.