Story Warren

Kindling Imagination for Kingdom Anticipation

The Warren & the World Vol 8, Issue 6

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I’ve got a purring cat curled up on my lap. She’s claimed me. I named her for one of my favorite literary heroines, Harriet Vane from Dorothy L. Sayers’ mystery novels. I think the original Harriet would like her namesake, for though she’s cuddly at the moment, she also is entirely her own beast, and the literary heroine would appreciate her independence. Not sure why I’m telling you this, but the green eyes in my lap are staring at me with some intent, and I’m just presuming it’s that she wanted me to write about her here.

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The Trust-Fall of Faith

Rachel S. Donahue shares a lesson learned halfway up the climbing wall. 

  • I reached the top of the wall and turned my head to take in the view. I was higher than I expected to be, and for the first time I noticed that I could feel no tension in the belay line. Was there supposed to be tension?
    I hadn’t thought it necessary to prove it first–why should I? But perched near the top of this wall, I suddenly realized the gravity of my mistake. I tried to lean back to put tension on the line, to feel it catch me, but the line gave me as much slack as I desired to allow me to climb freely.
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Crumbling into Compassion

Britney Rush shares a story of grace and learning humility.

  • My grandmother was one of the biggest influences in my life. My favorite memories are what I dubbed “teeth in the cup” moments, when she was at her most relaxed, letting her thoughts and teachings flow. One evening, when I was a teenager, she declared in her sweet, yet serious, way: “Baby, you can be humble or get humbled, but you help choose which way God gives it to ya’.” I would be thirty years old before what my grandmother said would truly sink in.
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Why This Quarantine Won’t Be the End of Us

My friends spent a six month sabbatical living in a bus and exploring the wilds of United States. Now they’re back home in China, cooped up in their apartment as the whole city is under quarantine.

  • Just a few months ago, our family was spending our days in the outdoors like we had never done before. Living on the bus meant we enjoyed daily trail runs, family hikes, climbing rocks and exploring canyons, sitting under trees and expansive night skies, breathing fresh air in abundance and getting freckled from the sun. It was the kind of life I’ve so wanted my kids to have, all that running around and exploring outside. It was part of what made the sabbatical such a gift, and I often thought of it like one of those triple action detergents where all the power is packed into a small little capsule… let this space of time be enough to last us for… awhile…I’d pray.
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13 Bilingual Children’s Books: English-Spanish

Wanting to expand your kids’ linguistic horizons? Check out this list of bilingual children’s books for all ages.

  • There are so many great English-Spanish bilingual children’s books being published today! It wasn’t so easy to find good choices when my kids were little. This list of bilingual picture books includes books that have English and Spanish text side by side as well as books that are written in English as the primary language but with Spanish words deftly woven into the text.
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Unhistoric Acts

James D. Witmer reminds us of the worth in spending our lives in channels which have no great name on the earth.

  • I’m pretty sure everyone has the urge to improve the world. Some feel it vaguely, as a desire to build or accomplish something, but it’s always there. You can see the impulse running pure in children; they love the process of making, no matter how messy the result.
    As people get older, we begin to want more. To create something is not enough – it must be Something That Matters. This can be a sign of maturity, moving beyond “self-expression,” but it can also push us into difficult places, because what is important and what feels important are often different.
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Truth and Grace Among Pigs

Chris Wheeler takes a look at a Richard Scarry classic.

  • One of my three-year-old’s favorite reads lately is the Richard Scarry classic book on manners: Pig Will and Pig Won’t. Like most Richard Scarry books, this little volume’s illustrations are crammed with details that make each page interesting. But the force of it, unlike the meandering but oh-so-fun-to-look-at Cars and Trucks and Things That Go (another favorite) is felt in the storyline. At first I wasn’t sure why, so I sat down to do some hardcore literary criticism on this knee-high book.
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Something to Do with Your Kids

You might not be quarantined, but it’s the time of year when you may very well be stuck inside. If you’re looking for something to do, check out these activity ideas.

Something to Watch

I grew up with the local classical radio station playing in the background. But seeing a symphony orchestra perform added another layer to the experience for me. Getting out to the symphony may not be possible for your family, but this video of the

Thanks for reading. We’re on your side. 

-The Story Warren Team

Carolyn Clare Givens
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