You know, sometimes I can get really annoyed at Christmas music. For a decent number of years now, any Christmas-musical sentimentality I have has been tied up in old hymns that remind me what the real story is. (Which is funny, actually, because I spent most of my life despising those dry, boring old hymns for the complete disconnection of belief and action that they represented to me.)
Well... now hymns are anything BUT dry and boring to me, and the Christmas-y ones are no longer confined to Christmas.
Probably about 5 years ago, I got my paws on Your King Has Come, which includes a whole pile of my favorite musicians singing a whole pile of amazing hymns and assorted other awesomes. And in the midst of all the awesomes, I found my favoritest ever Christmas song. Years (and hundreds of listens) later this song still makes me want to dance and cry and be generally absurd for the sheer joy of what God has done and is doing and will do on this broken sphere - and what He offers to the broken souls that walk it.
Without further ado, here's a link to the song:
Jeremy Casella - Joyful Fire
And here are the lyrics (to the best of my understanding):
Bright and shining like the sun
In the middle of a dark, hot night
I was walking through the fields,
I saw it hanging in the sky.
And, oh - some kind of illusion,
I thought I was out of my mind.
This light shone all around me,
It ripped through the dark like a knife -
Just like a knife
There was music in the air
And there was glory in the sky.
I saw an angel of the Lord who said to put my fears aside.
He said, "You've been waiting for a savior,
Well He's born in the city tonight.
You've been walking in the darkness
But you've seen a great light."
And, oh - I swear there were angels
just singing and dancing on high;
This light all around them,
a joyful fire in their eyes.
Oh, love - there was a fire in their eyes.
Oh, love. Oh, love - fire in their eyes
Oh, the righteousness and majesty,
This savior Jesus is our holy king,
Fulfilling every ancient prophecy,
The perfect sacrifice for you and me
So go tell the hungry,
Go tell the poor,
Go tell the widow,
Go tell the broken-hearted,
Go tell the homeless,
Go tell the thirsty,
Go tell the lonely -
the Lord keeps his promises,
the Lord keeps his promises.
* * * * * * *
(By the way, I would highly suggest pretty much all of Jeremy Casella's music. He's incredibly talented and beautifully honest. Check out his website here.)
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Monday, December 14, 2009
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
Lost for words...*
In the past year or so, I've become accustomed to relative silence. I say relative because the rest of the world is usually bumping around & full of ceaseless sound.
For me, this silence has taken a few different forms, such as choosing not to accompany most of my actions with portable music. (Relatively) silent car trip, bike ride, run, study-time, cleaning sessions, etc. Nano has gone dusty for extended periods of time, and laptop has spent most of its time on mute. (At least with that last one I can ignore the fact that my computer has pretty awful speakers.)
Since the beginning of this year, I've been trying to be attentive to how I listen: as a friend, as a wife, as a family member, as a follower of Christ & journeying soul, as a counselor, as an artist,** as a being-in-the-world-at-large.
It's been an interesting time (to say the least!) and I am still learning.
One area that has remained painfully silent for a while is the time I've spent in Scripture... and I've responded poorly by spending less time in it. And intermittently connecting with the sadness behind it all, then honestly wrestling with my responses to Truth. So much more going on around this... ask if you want to know.
So imagine my surprise when I'm driving home today, listening to Snow Patrol (which we just recently got an album of because we just recently found out they were awesome because we've been hiding under our grad-school-seminary rocks (boulders? mountains?) for the past year (and other rocks before that) and haven't added to our music library out of laziness or lack of funds or just being fine with what we had. did i mention the fact that i don't usually listen to much of anything in the car anyway?! Strange afternoon.).
Where was I? Ah, yes... Listening to Snow Patrol & more specifically, "Run."
I wasn't listening closely to the lyrics (that's the next step in my music-processing processy-type, well... process) and was blown away when, clear as a friend in the passenger seat a snippet of the words from the chorus stood out to me:
"Even if you cannot hear my voice, I'll be right beside you dear." (Run - Snow Patrol)
Yeah. I broke down in tears. (Which, thanks to a sweet & wise friend, I now know I should listen to.)
The rest of the song doesn't really seem to fit as the voice of God, but those words blew me away and are consistent with what I know to be true.
Snow Patrol is not a substitute for encountering my Savior in the pages of His story, but those perfectly-timed words are an encouragement to me as I open the pages again & listen anew.
- - - - - - -
* What I was this afternoon, obviously not anymore as I just spit out a whole bunch of them.
** I'm still wrestling with applying that label to myself...
For me, this silence has taken a few different forms, such as choosing not to accompany most of my actions with portable music. (Relatively) silent car trip, bike ride, run, study-time, cleaning sessions, etc. Nano has gone dusty for extended periods of time, and laptop has spent most of its time on mute. (At least with that last one I can ignore the fact that my computer has pretty awful speakers.)
Since the beginning of this year, I've been trying to be attentive to how I listen: as a friend, as a wife, as a family member, as a follower of Christ & journeying soul, as a counselor, as an artist,** as a being-in-the-world-at-large.
It's been an interesting time (to say the least!) and I am still learning.
One area that has remained painfully silent for a while is the time I've spent in Scripture... and I've responded poorly by spending less time in it. And intermittently connecting with the sadness behind it all, then honestly wrestling with my responses to Truth. So much more going on around this... ask if you want to know.
So imagine my surprise when I'm driving home today, listening to Snow Patrol (which we just recently got an album of because we just recently found out they were awesome because we've been hiding under our grad-school-seminary rocks (boulders? mountains?) for the past year (and other rocks before that) and haven't added to our music library out of laziness or lack of funds or just being fine with what we had. did i mention the fact that i don't usually listen to much of anything in the car anyway?! Strange afternoon.).
Where was I? Ah, yes... Listening to Snow Patrol & more specifically, "Run."
I wasn't listening closely to the lyrics (that's the next step in my music-processing processy-type, well... process) and was blown away when, clear as a friend in the passenger seat a snippet of the words from the chorus stood out to me:
"Even if you cannot hear my voice, I'll be right beside you dear." (Run - Snow Patrol)
Yeah. I broke down in tears. (Which, thanks to a sweet & wise friend, I now know I should listen to.)
The rest of the song doesn't really seem to fit as the voice of God, but those words blew me away and are consistent with what I know to be true.
Snow Patrol is not a substitute for encountering my Savior in the pages of His story, but those perfectly-timed words are an encouragement to me as I open the pages again & listen anew.
- - - - - - -
* What I was this afternoon, obviously not anymore as I just spit out a whole bunch of them.
** I'm still wrestling with applying that label to myself...
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Missing...
So... my life is organized by music, and just about any album I've had for a while brings up vivid memories. Some seasons of my life are characterized by a single song, others by a series of them. As I spent this morning cleaning, I found myself listening to another memory... one that comes up quite often actually.
Hold Me Jesus - Rich Mullins
This song is one that I resonate with anyway, but it will forever bring to mind a good friend - Aaron Pugh.
Aaron was a pretty incredible guy: tireless servant, generous giver, constant encourager, fellow pilgrim, bearer of the love & peace of Christ in many ways to many people. I actually think about him a lot... whenever I take out my bike. He rode too, though I never got to ride with him, and he passed away riding.
Aaron had a big heart... mine was too small and constricted at the time to let him be a good friend to me, and that was my deficiency, not his... I kept everyone out at that time in my life. He didn't let that get in the way, though, and I think that's part of why his life continues to challenge me to do the same. I spent a lot of my life pushing people away from me, and though I'm past that now, I think I still respond in that same old way sometimes when someone pushes me away. That response is not the way I'm called to live, and it is not love.
There's more going on in my heart right now than just memories of Aaron... but those memories brought some things to the surface today that I'd not wrestled with in a while. I guess it's time.
Hold Me Jesus - Rich Mullins
This song is one that I resonate with anyway, but it will forever bring to mind a good friend - Aaron Pugh.
Aaron was a pretty incredible guy: tireless servant, generous giver, constant encourager, fellow pilgrim, bearer of the love & peace of Christ in many ways to many people. I actually think about him a lot... whenever I take out my bike. He rode too, though I never got to ride with him, and he passed away riding.
Aaron had a big heart... mine was too small and constricted at the time to let him be a good friend to me, and that was my deficiency, not his... I kept everyone out at that time in my life. He didn't let that get in the way, though, and I think that's part of why his life continues to challenge me to do the same. I spent a lot of my life pushing people away from me, and though I'm past that now, I think I still respond in that same old way sometimes when someone pushes me away. That response is not the way I'm called to live, and it is not love.
There's more going on in my heart right now than just memories of Aaron... but those memories brought some things to the surface today that I'd not wrestled with in a while. I guess it's time.
Friday, June 05, 2009
Humor & the House of God
I guess I'll start at the bottom of my list of possible topics... after all, I finally have some pictures to share. Mildly amusing ones, too. :-)
So.
At least for the summer (possibly longer), I have one of the least fun jobs I've ever had... BUT it's also been one of the best in a lot of ways.
What do I do??
I clean our church building.
It's really not bad or difficult or anything... it just way larger chunks of time spent with chemicals than I'd prefer! I spent the first week or two gagging as I faced the prospect of cleaning 8 toilets & 2 urinals, but I am now patently unafraid of whatever surprise may greet me AND I have a newfound respect for janitorial staff everywhere! :-) Hmmmm. I'm blogging about toilets... I'll move on now.
I've actually begun to love the time I have each week doing this... once I finish balking at the whole hours-with-chemicals thing, of course. That aside, it's actually some beautiful time for any number of things: singing, thinking, just being quiet, listening for where or how God is stirring in or around me, praying, lamenting, laughing out loud, incurring minor injuries... oh wait, that last one's not a good thing. :-)
This week has been a particularly lovely time, and it began unassumingly with some new-to-me music (The Autumn Film... thanks Rob!). Their song, "Enough" had tears streaming down my face while I was scrubbing toilets - "my heart's been ripped wide open by all the things I didn't need; Your heart's been ripped wide open 'cause I keep chasing other things..." An apt description of my journey with Jesus. Perhaps more on that later.
After processing through that bout of tears, I moved on to some different music... Dave Smith's Two Cities. I knew there was the possibility of crying with this one, but I didn't expect to mop up my own weepy mess!! Okay... slight exaggeration. I don't cry often, and it usually takes a lot to get me there so to find myself crying twice in a day is quite a feat... but it's a very good thing when it happens. Tears are welcome now, and they're an opportunity to find out what has been stirring unknown in my soul.
Anyway... on Two Cities Dave shares a cover he recorded of Genesis's "Take Me Home." His rendition is beautiful and it reminds me of the handful of times that the DCF band played it on a Sunday morning. I'm pretty sure that this song has become one of those hooks that I hang memory and meaning on... I am forever learning what it means to pray for home.
Initially (and sometimes still), the song held for me a longing for my home with God - when I die or He returns, whatever it may look like. Not that I've stopped longing for that, but this earth-ball is where I'm travelling right now and I might be travelling on it for quite a while longer so I'm pretty sure it'd be wise to consider what God has called me to here.
When Jeromie and I left Clemson to move to Denver last August, I'm pretty sure we were both bawling along with the song as we left town in memory of the beautiful family and place we were leaving. A week or so later driving north into Denver from New Mexico, we found ourselves crying tears of joy to the same exact words because we knew that God was all over the move and was bringing us to a new and different home. Over the past few months, unbeknownst to me, my soul has been stirring along with the thought of home as a people. When I sang and cried yesterday, I was not longing for a physical place but loving on and missing and praying for my scattered family... and I was loving on and praying for and rejoicing over the family I have begun to gain here.
I miss my DCF family. I miss our house church there more than I can describe. I miss the connection and the honest tears and the difficult questions and the authentic love of that band of Jesus-followers. But at the same time, God is weaving together an amazing family here too. It does not look the same, and I don't want it to. I want to throw myself in unabashedly with the brothers and sisters I have here. I want to be open and anticipating something amazing, because Jesus is doing just that among us.
And I want to laugh. :-)
So I do.
Part of my family here is the incredible mix that is Wellspring Anglican Church... this is the one whose building I clean. I'll have to write another post sometime soon to talk about Wellsping more, but this post's already gotten longer than I'd planned and I still haven't gotten to the humorous part. We are a diverse pile of people from a bunch of different backgrounds with a shared love: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We also know how to have fun... just wait for pictures from Sunday's Block Party & small group cookouts!
Apparently we also know how to make one 5'5" cleaning-lady laugh every time she opens her closet door:
This is my twice-a-week companion.
He's a vacuum cleaner.
I'm pretty sure he needs a name.
Also, today I spent about an hour and a half scrubbing out the baptismal tub and I found this little guy:
I might clean the Wellspring building, but the building's not the house of God... we are as a part of His body, and I want to live in THAT house. :-)
P.S. That strange-looking platform? It's a dock. We're turning the sanctuary into a SWAMP this week for Vacation Bible School. Told you we know how to have fun! :-D
So.
At least for the summer (possibly longer), I have one of the least fun jobs I've ever had... BUT it's also been one of the best in a lot of ways.
What do I do??
I clean our church building.
It's really not bad or difficult or anything... it just way larger chunks of time spent with chemicals than I'd prefer! I spent the first week or two gagging as I faced the prospect of cleaning 8 toilets & 2 urinals, but I am now patently unafraid of whatever surprise may greet me AND I have a newfound respect for janitorial staff everywhere! :-) Hmmmm. I'm blogging about toilets... I'll move on now.
I've actually begun to love the time I have each week doing this... once I finish balking at the whole hours-with-chemicals thing, of course. That aside, it's actually some beautiful time for any number of things: singing, thinking, just being quiet, listening for where or how God is stirring in or around me, praying, lamenting, laughing out loud, incurring minor injuries... oh wait, that last one's not a good thing. :-)
This week has been a particularly lovely time, and it began unassumingly with some new-to-me music (The Autumn Film... thanks Rob!). Their song, "Enough" had tears streaming down my face while I was scrubbing toilets - "my heart's been ripped wide open by all the things I didn't need; Your heart's been ripped wide open 'cause I keep chasing other things..." An apt description of my journey with Jesus. Perhaps more on that later.
After processing through that bout of tears, I moved on to some different music... Dave Smith's Two Cities. I knew there was the possibility of crying with this one, but I didn't expect to mop up my own weepy mess!! Okay... slight exaggeration. I don't cry often, and it usually takes a lot to get me there so to find myself crying twice in a day is quite a feat... but it's a very good thing when it happens. Tears are welcome now, and they're an opportunity to find out what has been stirring unknown in my soul.
Anyway... on Two Cities Dave shares a cover he recorded of Genesis's "Take Me Home." His rendition is beautiful and it reminds me of the handful of times that the DCF band played it on a Sunday morning. I'm pretty sure that this song has become one of those hooks that I hang memory and meaning on... I am forever learning what it means to pray for home.
Initially (and sometimes still), the song held for me a longing for my home with God - when I die or He returns, whatever it may look like. Not that I've stopped longing for that, but this earth-ball is where I'm travelling right now and I might be travelling on it for quite a while longer so I'm pretty sure it'd be wise to consider what God has called me to here.
When Jeromie and I left Clemson to move to Denver last August, I'm pretty sure we were both bawling along with the song as we left town in memory of the beautiful family and place we were leaving. A week or so later driving north into Denver from New Mexico, we found ourselves crying tears of joy to the same exact words because we knew that God was all over the move and was bringing us to a new and different home. Over the past few months, unbeknownst to me, my soul has been stirring along with the thought of home as a people. When I sang and cried yesterday, I was not longing for a physical place but loving on and missing and praying for my scattered family... and I was loving on and praying for and rejoicing over the family I have begun to gain here.
I miss my DCF family. I miss our house church there more than I can describe. I miss the connection and the honest tears and the difficult questions and the authentic love of that band of Jesus-followers. But at the same time, God is weaving together an amazing family here too. It does not look the same, and I don't want it to. I want to throw myself in unabashedly with the brothers and sisters I have here. I want to be open and anticipating something amazing, because Jesus is doing just that among us.
And I want to laugh. :-)
So I do.
Part of my family here is the incredible mix that is Wellspring Anglican Church... this is the one whose building I clean. I'll have to write another post sometime soon to talk about Wellsping more, but this post's already gotten longer than I'd planned and I still haven't gotten to the humorous part. We are a diverse pile of people from a bunch of different backgrounds with a shared love: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We also know how to have fun... just wait for pictures from Sunday's Block Party & small group cookouts!
Apparently we also know how to make one 5'5" cleaning-lady laugh every time she opens her closet door:
He's a vacuum cleaner.
I'm pretty sure he needs a name.
Also, today I spent about an hour and a half scrubbing out the baptismal tub and I found this little guy:
I might clean the Wellspring building, but the building's not the house of God... we are as a part of His body, and I want to live in THAT house. :-)
P.S. That strange-looking platform? It's a dock. We're turning the sanctuary into a SWAMP this week for Vacation Bible School. Told you we know how to have fun! :-D
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Home Safely
good music & closed eyes
heading back to colder, drier climes (which i love)* * * * * * *
I am sad to have left my east coast friends and family
but I am glad to be home.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Warmth, or lack thereof...
There are a few blatantly obvious things that have been driven home for me this Christmas...
- it's cold outside. yes, even in SC. and people sleep in it.
- i've been taking a lot of things in life for granted.
- story is a beautiful, God-given gift.
- i love and appreciate my family, and I don't tell them that enough.
- i'm pretty sure that the last realization goes for my friends too...
The past few months have been full of newness and busy-ness and more reading crammed into the smallest time frame than any other time in my life, but I feel like they've also been full of a sort of inaction. I suppose it's the learning-first-then-doing sort, but it's a little hard to stomach and I find myself wondering if I could've been a better steward of these few short months. Continued food for thought, not reason for despair. :-)
But story, oh story! I have been devouring stories, enthralled by them. (Reminds me of a post I made sometime earlier in the year about wanting to read Scripture that way... I think I got more than I bargained for in that department. :-D Open-mouth-in-front-of-gushing-fire-hydrant-style. No complaints, though... I just know a few things I need to change as I move into this next semester...) My picks for holiday reading so far have ranged from Jean Duprau's City of Ember to Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice to some thought-provoking non-fiction... I don't know what else will enter the list at this point. I'm just hungry for good story and I can't quite put words to it right now.
A Christmas Eve playlist, (courtesy of Jeromie, crafted for Ewan):
- "Trumpet Child" by Over the Rhine
- "Hymn 101" by Joe Pug
- "Take Me Home" by Genesis as covered by Dave Smith
- "John Saw That Number" by Neko Case
- "Sometimes" by Punch Brothers
- "Rains in Asia" by Jump
- "Quiet" by This Will Destroy You
Hop on over to Jeromie's blog sometime tomorrow for some thoughts on these... in the meanwhile, I'm diggin'em.
Up Next: Pirate Hats & Duct Tape
- it's cold outside. yes, even in SC. and people sleep in it.
- i've been taking a lot of things in life for granted.
- story is a beautiful, God-given gift.
- i love and appreciate my family, and I don't tell them that enough.
- i'm pretty sure that the last realization goes for my friends too...
The past few months have been full of newness and busy-ness and more reading crammed into the smallest time frame than any other time in my life, but I feel like they've also been full of a sort of inaction. I suppose it's the learning-first-then-doing sort, but it's a little hard to stomach and I find myself wondering if I could've been a better steward of these few short months. Continued food for thought, not reason for despair. :-)
But story, oh story! I have been devouring stories, enthralled by them. (Reminds me of a post I made sometime earlier in the year about wanting to read Scripture that way... I think I got more than I bargained for in that department. :-D Open-mouth-in-front-of-gushing-fire-hydrant-style. No complaints, though... I just know a few things I need to change as I move into this next semester...) My picks for holiday reading so far have ranged from Jean Duprau's City of Ember to Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice to some thought-provoking non-fiction... I don't know what else will enter the list at this point. I'm just hungry for good story and I can't quite put words to it right now.
A Christmas Eve playlist, (courtesy of Jeromie, crafted for Ewan):
- "Trumpet Child" by Over the Rhine
- "Hymn 101" by Joe Pug
- "Take Me Home" by Genesis as covered by Dave Smith
- "John Saw That Number" by Neko Case
- "Sometimes" by Punch Brothers
- "Rains in Asia" by Jump
- "Quiet" by This Will Destroy You
Hop on over to Jeromie's blog sometime tomorrow for some thoughts on these... in the meanwhile, I'm diggin'em.
Up Next: Pirate Hats & Duct Tape
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
Take Me Home...
Well, the move's starting to sink in. Before the POD arrived this morning, it didn't take too much of a stretch to imagine that, perhaps, we were re-arranging the house. The normal person doesn't pack things up in boxes for a simple re-arrangement, but, hey, we're not exactly normal people here in the Rand house, so it could happen. This definite sign of uprooting has brought tears to my eyes much more easily than before. (For example: turning onto the campus that I once hated but now love to meet someone for lunch, hearing the first few notes of a song that I love sung by a favoritest musician.) I suspect this may continue for a while after we've moved too, especially when remembering the folks I'll miss & the unique places I've dwelled these past many years.
You know, I've called these places home because they are what I know of home:
- little house, large yard, plenty of trees (until I went off to college)
- a dorm room or apartment shared with a variety of fun characters (myself included!)
- the forests of my fluffy Blue Ridge Mountains
- the high limbs of favorite trees
- a cabin full of excited girls
- a tent miles from the nearest road
- a room full of truth-telling, BS-detecting family known collectively as house church
- a house in Greenville, an apartment in Clemson with my dear husband
- a basement full of folding chairs and leaks, surrounded by fellow children of an incredible, merciful Father
- eyes closed, lost in the music of the DCF band
- a deserted road on an early morning, by bike or running shoes
- a green lake surrounded by old peaks, history speaking from its depths
- deepening friendships with grace-giving fellow pilgrims
I could go on for a very long time.
I was reminded this morning (as I drove in to meet my beautiful friend Rachael for lunch) that these are only previews of home. Surprisingly, the song that usually reminds me of this is not a typical worship song... it's my favorite cover of any song ever: Genesis' "Take Me Home" as done by Dave & Co. Singing along (in the car... yes, I am one of *those* people), I remember that I am a pilgrim on a journey to the home God created us for. This doesn't mean I should disconnect from this world I'm in, but rather engage - love deeply, serve joyfully, persevere purposefully, ask meaningful questions, give meaningful answers, think bigger, believe even bigger than that, because God is beyond what I can fathom, and He's made a way to live and breathe and dwell with Him, wretched as I am.
That might be the longest run-on sentence ever. Or not. I don't care. :-)
The countdown stands at ~3 days now, but it's ticking onward. I will not coast through them, as I am prone to do, but live awake and aware as I'm called to. I'll probably cry some, but I really do welcome that now. :-)
* * * * * * *
P.S. This just happens to be my 100th post as the Prodigal Pilgrim. I feel like that (and so many other things) might just call for some celebration.
So. I'm giving away something handmade!
Set of 5 hand-printed cards,
which are also available in my Etsy shop
When I arrive in Denver, I'll do a random drawing to figure out who gets them. In the meantime, leave me a comment that includes your name and how you found the blog! If you pass it along to another friend who enters, I'll stick your name in again just for kicks. I'm a little curious to find out how people get here. :-)
We roll into Denver on the 15th, so sometime that weekend, I'll post the winner.
You know, I've called these places home because they are what I know of home:
- little house, large yard, plenty of trees (until I went off to college)
- a dorm room or apartment shared with a variety of fun characters (myself included!)
- the forests of my fluffy Blue Ridge Mountains
- the high limbs of favorite trees
- a cabin full of excited girls
- a tent miles from the nearest road
- a room full of truth-telling, BS-detecting family known collectively as house church
- a house in Greenville, an apartment in Clemson with my dear husband
- a basement full of folding chairs and leaks, surrounded by fellow children of an incredible, merciful Father
- eyes closed, lost in the music of the DCF band
- a deserted road on an early morning, by bike or running shoes
- a green lake surrounded by old peaks, history speaking from its depths
- deepening friendships with grace-giving fellow pilgrims
I could go on for a very long time.
I was reminded this morning (as I drove in to meet my beautiful friend Rachael for lunch) that these are only previews of home. Surprisingly, the song that usually reminds me of this is not a typical worship song... it's my favorite cover of any song ever: Genesis' "Take Me Home" as done by Dave & Co. Singing along (in the car... yes, I am one of *those* people), I remember that I am a pilgrim on a journey to the home God created us for. This doesn't mean I should disconnect from this world I'm in, but rather engage - love deeply, serve joyfully, persevere purposefully, ask meaningful questions, give meaningful answers, think bigger, believe even bigger than that, because God is beyond what I can fathom, and He's made a way to live and breathe and dwell with Him, wretched as I am.
That might be the longest run-on sentence ever. Or not. I don't care. :-)
The countdown stands at ~3 days now, but it's ticking onward. I will not coast through them, as I am prone to do, but live awake and aware as I'm called to. I'll probably cry some, but I really do welcome that now. :-)
P.S. This just happens to be my 100th post as the Prodigal Pilgrim. I feel like that (and so many other things) might just call for some celebration.
So. I'm giving away something handmade!
which are also available in my Etsy shop
When I arrive in Denver, I'll do a random drawing to figure out who gets them. In the meantime, leave me a comment that includes your name and how you found the blog! If you pass it along to another friend who enters, I'll stick your name in again just for kicks. I'm a little curious to find out how people get here. :-)
We roll into Denver on the 15th, so sometime that weekend, I'll post the winner.
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Inspired.
LottaJansdotter.bikes.katieherzig.buttons
* * * * * * *
Lotta Jansdotter - After hearing much buzz in the general sewing community about her various fabric designs (which are quite cool!), I came across a book at work that she'd published about printing. I borrowed the book for a few days, then purchased it because I'd pretty much fallen in love with the printing process. I'm now eyeing some of the sketchy potatoes in our pantry in a more friendly manner. :-)
Bikes - I *love* my bicycle. I've had it for about 10 years now, though I've sorely neglected it in favor of the mountain variety (or other pursuits) for most of college & post-college. Well, the bike is back, and the Liz is all the happier for it! I think I'm addicted... which could be a good thing, since it'll be my primary source of transportation in Denver. :-D
Katie Herzig - So, I got an email from the Derek Webb mailing list about NoiseTrade, headed over to check it out, and found out about this phenomenal and fun singer/songwriter. Her Apple Tree album has been constantly spinning in my head & cd player, and I'd like to listen to more of her work.
Buttons - I would just like to take this opportunity to tell the world that I like buttons. In the semi-words of my lovely friend Jen: it's my blog, i do what i want. :-D Seriously though, there are some very cool buttons floating around, and I'd like to find a use for them. Even if it's just to make my own 'pieces of flair' board with buttons. But I'd rather knit sweaters. Which reminds me that I need to block the one I finished last week. I should get on that.
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Inspired.
* * * * * * *
Swallowfield - Jennifer Judd-McGee of Portland, Maine. Beautiful collages, a unique style, challenges me to think beyond my little sketches.
More-with-Less Cookbook - Was introduced to this excellent cookbook by my good friend Becki Pesce. Jeromie and I have been wrestling over ways to live more simply, and our food-making & -consuming habits could use some work. After digging around in the cookbook during our stay in Denver, we decided to go ahead and get it.
Neko Case - I'm just at the beginning of being inspired by this singer-songwriter. Heard 'John Saw That Number' on a sampler I got from work, and have been enjoying the bits I've heard since. May be the next album on repeat for me. :-)
Beans - They come in such beautiful colors! And they're relatively inexpensive! I'm looking for a way to incorporate them more into our meals and kitchen-decor.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
A Nearly Perfect Evening
Today at work was a bit hectic, but the evening has been almost heavenly... and it's only getting better!
We've:
- run / walked on a crisp, cold evening
- come home with froze nozes and...
- made hot chocolate with peppermint sticks!
- listened to good music and laughed about how our iTunes has one of Phil Keaggy's acoustic albums labeled as EXPLICIT
- made delicious cake that involved some chocolate pudding
- made a yummy alfredo with mushrooms & spinach (2 favorites)
and then we:
- looked out the door to see a dusting of snow and more coming down!
We've:
- run / walked on a crisp, cold evening
- come home with froze nozes and...
- made hot chocolate with peppermint sticks!
- listened to good music and laughed about how our iTunes has one of Phil Keaggy's acoustic albums labeled as EXPLICIT
- made delicious cake that involved some chocolate pudding
- made a yummy alfredo with mushrooms & spinach (2 favorites)
and then we:
- looked out the door to see a dusting of snow and more coming down!
Friday, January 11, 2008
Trumpet Child (Over the Rhine)
While I'm on the subject of things that have moved me, or that I just plain enjoy, I think I'll share some music too!
The Trumpet Child
Over the Rhine
Jeromie and I were introduced to this album shortly before Christmas by our friend, Dave Smith. He lent us his copy for about a week and I spun it pretty much all week. Played in the car, played it at home, missed it when I gave it back, got it for Christmas!!! I've not tired of it yet.
I haven't listened to much Over the Rhine before, but apparently this is not much like any of their earlier albums. To me, it's a mix of jazz and 50's and playfulness and beauty, and I rather like it. The DCF band played the title track, "The Trumpet Child," just before Christmas - Monica did an impressive job with the vocals, and even pulled out her trumpet.
Tis' many much goodness. :-)
Over the Rhine
Jeromie and I were introduced to this album shortly before Christmas by our friend, Dave Smith. He lent us his copy for about a week and I spun it pretty much all week. Played in the car, played it at home, missed it when I gave it back, got it for Christmas!!! I've not tired of it yet.
I haven't listened to much Over the Rhine before, but apparently this is not much like any of their earlier albums. To me, it's a mix of jazz and 50's and playfulness and beauty, and I rather like it. The DCF band played the title track, "The Trumpet Child," just before Christmas - Monica did an impressive job with the vocals, and even pulled out her trumpet.
Tis' many much goodness. :-)
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Today...
Today's plans:
- sew sew sew (sew sew sew sew sew sew)
- run
- house church!
Update:
Music for today's endeavors...
- Deathcab for Cutie - Transatlanticism
- Delgados - Great Eastern and Universal Audio
- Sandra McCracken - The Builder and the Architect
- sew sew sew (sew sew sew sew sew sew)
- run
- house church!
Update:
Music for today's endeavors...
- Deathcab for Cutie - Transatlanticism
- Delgados - Great Eastern and Universal Audio
- Sandra McCracken - The Builder and the Architect
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Jeremy Casella :: Recovery
This album has rather quickly climbed near the top of my most-playeds in i-tunes in month or so since I first got my paws on it. Jeremy Casella is now topped only by Chris Thile & U2 (who've been in the library for years). :-)
My first exposure to Jeremy Casella's artful music was at an event where Indelible Grace came to play at Clemson Presbyterian. "Joyful Fire" spoke volumes to me and prompted me to hunt down more of his music. Several years later, he's released an album called Recovery and it is incredible. Incredible musically, incredible in honesty, incredible in diversity with a mix of genres and styles.
The entire album has resonated with me lately, in title and lyrics, as I've found the voice of, perhaps, a kindred spirit - one who knows that God calls us to a living, breathing relationship with Him and with others and that this honesty requires, at times, a wrestling with God, self and story.
In this album, Jeremy Casella has boldly spoken of God and His truth, and of the pilgrim journey we're on.
Once again, I'd suggest *everyone* go get it! :-D
http://www.jeremycasella.com/store/store.html
My first exposure to Jeremy Casella's artful music was at an event where Indelible Grace came to play at Clemson Presbyterian. "Joyful Fire" spoke volumes to me and prompted me to hunt down more of his music. Several years later, he's released an album called Recovery and it is incredible. Incredible musically, incredible in honesty, incredible in diversity with a mix of genres and styles.
The entire album has resonated with me lately, in title and lyrics, as I've found the voice of, perhaps, a kindred spirit - one who knows that God calls us to a living, breathing relationship with Him and with others and that this honesty requires, at times, a wrestling with God, self and story.
In this album, Jeremy Casella has boldly spoken of God and His truth, and of the pilgrim journey we're on.
Once again, I'd suggest *everyone* go get it! :-D
http://www.jeremycasella.com/store/store.html
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Recovery
Not only the name of an EXCELLENT album... also what I've been doing this past week.
The latter is a very long story, so I'll save it for another post. The former is Jeremy Casella's new album and it's awesome. It's a mix of folk/electronic/awesomeness with strings... a mix that I didn't exactly like at first but I certainly do now. As always, his lyrics are incredible.
So (to my 2 readers :-p): I suggest you get your paws on it soon!
http://www.jeremycasella.com/store/store.html
The latter is a very long story, so I'll save it for another post. The former is Jeremy Casella's new album and it's awesome. It's a mix of folk/electronic/awesomeness with strings... a mix that I didn't exactly like at first but I certainly do now. As always, his lyrics are incredible.
So (to my 2 readers :-p): I suggest you get your paws on it soon!
http://www.jeremycasella.com/store/store.html
Sunday, May 06, 2007
oh happy day! (a brief synopsis)
This post, like, soooooo needs a picture. (hehe!)
But it, like, doesn't have one. I am, like, such a loser.
Well, I won't dwell on that. Instead I shall dwell on the fact that I am *not* exhausted right now or sad about going to work in the morning. I've had an utterly fantastic weekend on all sides.
The weekend started out with the arrival of some yarn I'd ordered to make a present for a friend, followed by seeing Guster in concert at Furman on Friday night. Albumatically (I made up a word!), I really like their music... but they were even better live.
Saturday morning, Jeromie and I drove up to meet with our wedding photographer guy. Nearly a year later, and the album is still in the works (partly due to us dragging our feet on selecting pictures). When we arrived, he was having trouble locating some files on his computer (namely, our album!). Jero looked it over and tried some things, then the photographer called Apple support who told him he'd probably lost the files permanently. As he and Jeromie talked, one comment made Jero go "Aha!!" and he got everything back to rights. The short of it is that we now have a couple of extra pages in our album at no extra cost. :-)
As if that weren't enough wedding-y goodness, we got to go to my friend Amber's wedding in the evening. It was beautiful and simple and awesome to see... I can't really do it justice in such a small space.
Today finished off everything perfectly with an impromptu climbing trip to Currahee (Toccoa, GA) with some friends from DCF. I think the two best parts of it were: getting out in the woods with Jero AND discovering that I could climb without a nagging pain in my foot. Hopefully this signals an end to six long, frustrating months of being sidelined with a foot injury. I even came home and took a short walk/run with Molly-dog!
So here ends a wonderful, Gusterful, climbingful, Jesusful weekend. I hope this also signals the beginning of a similarly awesome week!
But it, like, doesn't have one. I am, like, such a loser.
Well, I won't dwell on that. Instead I shall dwell on the fact that I am *not* exhausted right now or sad about going to work in the morning. I've had an utterly fantastic weekend on all sides.
The weekend started out with the arrival of some yarn I'd ordered to make a present for a friend, followed by seeing Guster in concert at Furman on Friday night. Albumatically (I made up a word!), I really like their music... but they were even better live.
Saturday morning, Jeromie and I drove up to meet with our wedding photographer guy. Nearly a year later, and the album is still in the works (partly due to us dragging our feet on selecting pictures). When we arrived, he was having trouble locating some files on his computer (namely, our album!). Jero looked it over and tried some things, then the photographer called Apple support who told him he'd probably lost the files permanently. As he and Jeromie talked, one comment made Jero go "Aha!!" and he got everything back to rights. The short of it is that we now have a couple of extra pages in our album at no extra cost. :-)
As if that weren't enough wedding-y goodness, we got to go to my friend Amber's wedding in the evening. It was beautiful and simple and awesome to see... I can't really do it justice in such a small space.
Today finished off everything perfectly with an impromptu climbing trip to Currahee (Toccoa, GA) with some friends from DCF. I think the two best parts of it were: getting out in the woods with Jero AND discovering that I could climb without a nagging pain in my foot. Hopefully this signals an end to six long, frustrating months of being sidelined with a foot injury. I even came home and took a short walk/run with Molly-dog!
So here ends a wonderful, Gusterful, climbingful, Jesusful weekend. I hope this also signals the beginning of a similarly awesome week!
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