I have had more online interactions in the past week than I think I’ve had during the entire pandemic. I even dreamed about Zoom calls the other night. But also, the light has angled through the trees in just the way it does in October, and I’ve taken walks around the block and reveled in the crunching leaves under my feet. So it’s all a balance.

Around the Web

For All My Fellow Phonies

Melissa at Your Mom Has A Blog explores living in the tension of the already and not-yet.

I think for most of my Christian life I have felt like an imposter. I know myself pretty well. I know how hard my heart can be. I know how difficult it often is for me to do things with the right motives, with a spirit of real love and compassion. I know how far short that I fall daily of loving God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength.
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Why did God make us so easy to trick?

Andrew Kern tackles questions of fools and folly.

Huckleberry Finn’s author is supposed to have said that it is easier to fool a person than it is to convince him that he has been fooled. That triggered a longish reflection in me wherein I asked myself, why is that? And, is that good or bad?
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Announcing Every Moment Holy, Vol. 2: Death, Grief, and Hope

Our friends at The Rabbit Room are publishing another volume of Every Moment Holy, focused on death, grief, and hope. I’ve read a few of these liturgies, and you won’t be disappointed.

Every Moment Holy, Vol. 2: Death, Grief, and Hope is a book of liturgies for seasons of dying and grieving—liturgies such as “A Liturgy for the Scattering of Ashes,” “A Liturgy for the Loss of a Spouse,” or “A Liturgy for the Wake of a National Tragedy.” These are ways of reminding us that our lives are shot through with sacred purpose and eternal hopes even when—especially when—suffering and pain threaten to overwhelm us.
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Funny Picture Books with a Message

Carolyn Leiloglou recommends some laugh-out-loud picture books with heart.

Sometimes you just need to laugh. When you and your kids are having a bad day, pick up a humous book, and pretty soon, everyone is giggling, even you. And if we’re talking about funny picture books with a message that doesn’t detract from the story, even better.
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Around the Warren

Knights of the Kitchen Table

Tyler Leland is on a quest.

Chivalry has gradually disappeared from our culture. It’s time to bring it back.
What does it mean to be a man? Unfortunately, men are consistently defined by how tough they are, how much money they make, and how successful they are with women.
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Home in the Woods, by Eliza Wheeler: A Review

Théa Rosenburg introduces us to a beautiful picture book.

A few months into quarantine, I started keeping a list. This is nothing new—I keep dozens of lists. Hundreds! But this particular list didn’t contain a single task or idea. I wasn’t planning for or brainstorming about anything, but simply making a note each time I noticed something our family gained because of the quarantine.
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The Other Side

Glenn McCarty writes about stories that confront death.

As I recall her in my mind’s eye, Mrs. Thompson (first name lost to time) was a pleasantly plump, nurturing fifth grade teacher, clad in the sort of festive, seasonally-appropriate sweaters favored by seasoned elementary school veterans. During my first year at that small Christian school in Winter Park, Florida, she led my class through math and science, handwriting and Bible. And, she also had the distinction of bringing me face to face with death for the first meaningful time, through story.
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Lemony Snicket’s The Dark

Laura Peterson reviews this Lemony Snicket picture book.

“I’m afraid of the dark.”
If you’ve ever said or thought this, would you please raise your hand?
Okay, every one of you can put your hand down now, ‘cause I know you all raised ‘em. We all know the dark is scary sometimes. Literal, emotional, spiritual; there’s all kinds of darkness, and they all can be a bit frightening.
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