The Warren & the World Vol 4, Issue 12

The Warren & the World is Story Warren’s weekly newsletter, providing a round-up of our favorite things from around the web as well as a review of what was on our site over the past week. We’re glad you’re here!

A Quick Note about Inkwell

We wanted to let the Story Warren community know that Inkwell: Story Warren’s Family Conference, will not take place in 2016.

We are grateful for this community and want to serve you in a variety of ways. Given the resources required to offer an exceptional Inkwell experience, we felt it prudent to take a break this year and are looking to 2017.

Around the Web

Walk Away from the World to Pray

So, technically this is a meditation for Tuesday of Holy Week, and we’re past that. But frankly I think it is a worthy meditation for any Tuesday, or any Wednesday, Thursday, Friday… Paul Maxwell writes at the Desiring God blog about Jesus choice to walk away from the crowds to pray.

Jesus and the disciples were walking straight toward the jagged cleft of tragedy. They were running into trauma, into chaos, into sadness, into the hungry jaws of their cruel weekend. Certainly Jesus would be consumed with the busyness of his final week of life. But oddly, he chooses to commute to a place that is later said by Luke to be “a Sabbath day’s journey away” (Acts 1:12). Jesus didn’t get an apartment in the city. He didn’t room at the conference center. Even though he taught “early in the morning,” he chose to commute to do his common work from an inconvenient and an uncommon place. Why?

Simplifying Childhood May Protect Against Mental Health Issues

When we talk about fostering imagination here at Story Warren, we have lots of good reasons behind it. In an article at the Huffington Post, Tracey Gillet indicates one more–there’s an argument to be made that what she calls “simplifying childhood” is really just one way of fostering imagination.

Early in his career, Payne volunteered in refugee camps, where children were dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder. He describes them as, “jumpy, nervous, and hyper-vigilant, wary of anything novel or new.”
Years later Payne ran a private practice in England, where he recognized many affluent children were displaying the same behavioural tendencies as the children he’d seen living in war zones. Why would these children living perfectly safe lives show similar symptoms?

13 Children’s Books That Encourage Kindness Towards Others

Over at Buzzfeed there’s a user-generated list of books that encourage kindness in kids. I’ve heard more than one of these recommended by friends, so I thought I’d pass the list along.

Kindness is one of the most important character traits, but sometimes kids need an extra reminder about the best ways to be kind to others or why kindness matters. These books provide that reminder in creative and appealing ways. Happy reading!

The Kind of Mom I Want to Be

Brittany Dixon writes at A Healthy Slice of Life about learning to let go of the busyness and be.

I turned on some Disney Pandora, marched past the whining and got to work folding laundry while chatting with the girls about who knows what. Evidently it was dull enough to have them decide to find something to play with on their own and soon enough they were cooking a feast in the play kitchen and putting babies down for naps.Slowly my emails and the outside world faded as I got caught up in singing along with Gaston (yes, I know every word) and acting out other ridiculous Disney scenes to get giggles from the girls.
Slowly but surely, I felt a metaphorical exhale as all the things I was “supposed” to do disappeared from my mind. Somewhere between my ratty ponytail and over-sized pajamas, my heart realized that THIS is the kind of mom I want to be.

Around the Warren

The Old Stories

Glenn McCarty reminds us of the value of the old stories in the midst of the shine of the new things.

I’m a sucker for the New. Whether it’s browsing the stacks of a bookstore and salivating at the tantalizing jacket copy, or streaming a 90-second clip of new music, the impulse to acquire is often too strong to resist. I cave; I buy; I apologize to my wife; I invest in more shelves; the cycle continues. Much in our culture feeds this hunger for the new, pointing us toward the future at the expense of the present or the past. After all, new is good for business. Mark down the inventory, clear the shelves, start again.
But what happens to the Old in all of this?

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

Liz Cottrill reminds us that a good book is a good book–no matter your age.

What is your opinion of a 44-year-old mother who reads a children’s novel and stays up till 1:00 a.m. to finish it? And what if she reads it again 15 years later and finds it just as entertaining as the first time? Does this reflect immaturity on her taste in literature, or could it be that it is true that the best literature for children is best because it is enjoyed at any age?

Something to Do with Your Kids

If you’re hosting family and friends for a special meal together this weekend as we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, perhaps your kids would like to be involved by making the placemats!