A Christmas Carol

Christmas is a time of traditions. One of my traditions is my annual reading of  "A Christmas Carol." I love this story of transformation and redemption, set in a Victorian Christmas setting. 

One of my favorite passages: 

“But you were always a good man of business, Jacob,' faltered Scrooge, who now began to apply this to himself.

Business!' cried the Ghost, wringing its hands again. "Mankind was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The deals of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”

I've seen many film versions of the story but my favorites are the Patrick Stewart and the Jim Carey versions.

Stewart, because of his excellent performance.
Carey, because of the delightful animation and being true to the text of the book.

I recently watched the 2017 film "The Man Who Invented Christmas" - the story of how Charles Dickens came to write "A Christmas Carol." This was a fun film with interesting tidbits about the original story that might be missed by those who are not devoted fans of the book. I enjoyed seeing the clues.

Here's to a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 

God bless us, everyone!

What are you reading?

I've been plowing my way through the Mitford series by Jan Karon, but am taking a break. 

I read John Grisham's latest "The Reckoning" - not really impressed with the story line and characterization, but appreciated his in-depth research regarding the Bataan Death March in the Philippines during WWII. 

I'm reading some nonfiction as well, classic writings: Common Sense by Thomas Paine and Democracy in America by Alexis De Tocqueville. 

I've also picked the The Silver Chair for a delightful re-read. Love the Chronicles of Narnia. 

So what books are you reading?

Color Book Art

So excited! I was blessed to part of this fun project spearheaded by my writer/poet friend Dean Miller. Dean asked me to illustrate his Haiku alphabet color book. I had a blast creating these coloring pages. Check out this brand new book on amazon:

Color Me with Haiku ABC

Mouse Stories

Mouse on Rock, watercolor by Luana Krause

I've been doing some fun art projects. I'm currently working on some mouse illustrations to inspire a new series of stories about a mouse. 

All this has made me think of literary mice. Reepicheep (The Chronicles of Narnia), The Lion and the Mouse, Stuart Little, Tales of Beatrix Potter, (The Tailor of Gloucestser, The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse), the Mouse and the Motorcycle, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Mole Meets Rat (Wind in the Willows).

Of Mice and Men (well, that's a bit of a stretch but it is one of my favorite novels). 

And let's not forget rat stories like Ratatouille!

Do you have any favorite mouse stories?

Timothy's Discovery

I finished the first book of the Mitford series by Jan Karon, "At Home in Mitford," and am continuing the saga with "A Light in the Window." The stories tell of the adventures of Father Timothy, an  Episcopalian priest in the town of Mitford.

Sweet, funny and at times heart-wrenching. This passage captured my attention. Father Timothy had been courting his next door neighbor, Cynthia Coppersmith, a writer and illustrator of children's stories. He had gone on a trip to Ireland and was away for two months. Upon his return, he had tried to meet up with Cynthia, but they hadn't had a chance to get together because of their work schedules. 

In this passage, Father Timothy had just found out that Cynthia has moved to New York City. 

He was struck by the endless number of things he hadn't thought about concerning Cynthia. Why had he never been more curious about her life, about her work? Where had she gone to school, for heaven's sake? And why hadn't he found out why she nearly died in a hospital? He'd even lacked the courtesy to ask lately about her nephew who was as cherished as a son. It seemed a small thing to wonder, but what was his last name? He didn't even know what kind of work he did.

She had asked him to pose for a wise man in "The Mouse in the Manger," yet he'd never inquired about the finished book. Worse, he'd never even read anything she had written. 

He had treated her, he realized, as if she didn't really exist.

That realization was overwhelming to him. He'd believed what his parishioners had told him, that he was caring and nurturing. Yet, it was a lie. He wasn't really either of those things. The truth was, he was unutterably selfish and self-seeking, going his own way, doing his own pious thing. It was disgusting to him.

How had he come this far without seeing himself for what he really was? How had God let him get away with this loathsome deception for so long?

He believed he had never married because he was married to his calling. The truth was, he had a complete lack of the equipment demanded for truly loving. 

Yet underneath all that show of sop and decency was a man utterly fixed on himself, on his own concerns. And underneath some shallow layer of seeming warmth and caring was a cold stratum of granite. 

The very last place he wanted to be day after tomorrow was in the pulpit. It was all a joke, and the joke was on him.

A New Perspective on Mondays

While reading the book, "At Home in Mitford" by Jan Karon, I came across a passage that delighted my soul and gave me a new perspective about Mondays:

How could he have considered taking Monday off? Monday was the diving board poised over the rest of the week. One walked over the board, reviewed the situation, planned one's strategy, bounced a few times to get the feel of things, and then made a clean dive. Without Monday, one simply bombed into the water, belly first, and hoped for the best.

What is your favorite day of the week? For me, I have an office job where I work business hours Monday through Friday. I like Thursdays best. I am still engaged in the work for the day but know that very soon the weekend will be here. Unlike Fridays where I am just trying to get through the day so I can start the weekend. As a result, the Friday workday usually passes very slowly.

At Home in Mitford

My latest book adventure is the Mitford series by Jan Karon. I heard about it from some friends and thought I'd give it a try.

I've only just begun, I'm about six chapters in the first book "At Home in Mitford" and it's such a delight!

Here's the blurb on amazon:

It's easy to feel at home in Mitford. In these high, green hills, the air is pure, the village is charming, and the people are generally lovable. Yet, Father Tim, the bachelor rector, wants something more. Enter a dog the size of a sofa who moves in and won't go away. Add an attractive neighbor who begins wearing a path through the hedge. Now, stir in a lovable but unloved boy, a mystifying jewel theft, and a secret that's sixty years old. Suddenly, Father Tim gets more than he bargained for. And readers get a rich comedy about ordinary people and their ordinary lives.

I can relate to Father Tim in some interesting ways. He started jogging for his health (I've been a jogger/runner most of my adult life). He turned 60 on his birthday (I am 60). He also quotes Bible verses to go with what's happening in his life (me, too!) 

Here's to learning all about this intriguing town of Mitford and the interesting characters created by Jan Karon!