Happy Tuesday... aka Virtual Coffee day :)
Head over to Amy's to link up and visit with so many others!
If we were meeting for coffee today...
I'd have tea. I'd probably bring my own Yogi tea, one of their Cold and Flu season ones... and just order hot water. Three of us have a cold... which is honestly ok. Yes, I'm sick of cold and flu season. Really really sick of it. But this week I'm kind of enjoying a reason to stay home and hibernate... .
... and drink lots of tea.
Notice the cloth napkins under the cup? Mom sent us a box of goodies, and they were included. The lady can make almost anything, and these turned out really well! I love them...
If we were chatting away, I'd probably mention how this morning was one of those stay in your jammies, find a sunbeam and curl up with blankets and kiddos kind of mornings. I kind of like those.
And then I'd tell you about the short sleeved sweater I'm knitting for Paige. I'm really excited about it! I finished a baby blanket last week, and I think it gave me just enough courage to start on another project. I'm working through a lot of firsts on my knitting journey, and with everything I learn I get a little more daring and a little more excited to try new projects. And plus... Paige picked out the yarn for the sweater, and she's super excited that I'm making something just for her, so it's extra fun to work on this project. {you can find the details here on Ravelry... I'm crnnoel over there if you're also a knitter, I'd love for you to find me there too!}
I know I've mentioned it before, but I would most definitely have to tell you about the book I just finished. Ann Voskamp has written one of the most breathtaking books I have ever held. One Thousand Gifts is in itself a gift. If we were sitting across from each other, you might notice my eyes getting a little watery as I talked about it, because it was just that good.
I'd probably pull out the book from my bag and read aloud a few passages...
"When we lay the soil of our hard lives open to te rain of grace and let joy penetrate our cracked and dry places, let joy soak into our broken skin and deep crevices, life grows. How can this not be the best thing for the world? For us? The clouds open when we mouth thanks." ~ A.V.
"The world I live in is loud and blurring and toilets plug and I get speeding tickets and the dog gets sick all over the back step and I forget everything and these six kids lean hard into me all day to teach and raise and lead and I fail hard and there are real souls that are at stake and how long do I really have to figure out how to live full of grace, full of joy - before these six beautiful children fly the coop and my mother days fold up quiet? How do you open the eyes to see how to take the daily, domestic, workday vortex and invert it into the dome of an everyday cathedral? Could I go back to my life and pray with eyes wide open?
Praying with eyes wide open is the only way to pray without ceasing." ~A.V.
"The wrinkled man in the wheelchair with legs wrapped, the girl with her face punctured deep with the teeth marks of a dog, the mess of this world, and I see - this, all this, is what the French call d'un beau affreux, what the Germans call hubsch-hasslich - the ugly-beautiful. What the postimpressionist painter Paul Gauguin expresse as "Le laid peut etre beau" - The ugly can be beautiful. The dark can give birth to life; suffering can deliver grace." ~A.V.
"If there are wolves in the woods - expect to see wolves; and if there is God in this place - expect to see God." ~A.V.
And so... I'd hand you the book and tell you to read it and to grow with it and to cherish it. I have, and will.
If we were meeting for coffee today I'd tell you how much I appreciate your company. How much it means to be here with you. Exchanging stories and pleasantries and bits of our days and joys and maybe a few sorrows. Giving words voices and hope a pair of wings to fly between us.
Until next time...