A Snow Tale

Once upon a time, there were two middle-aged adults who lived in the South. They were going about their normal activities of work and taking care of things when they heard a weather forecast that they just couldn't believe: their town was to get several inches of snow in one night! In the past 19 years they had not seen this amount of snow, and since it wasn't very cold outside, they weren't sure that the snow would actually come to fruition. "Can this be correct?" the former northerners wondered. But they were awakened one morning at 5 a.m. with a variety of sounds that told them that the power was off. They looked out the window and saw that the reports were correct - there was indeed a lot of snow on the ground. The next 24 hours were very tiresome and difficult for the couple, as they drove around town looking for hot spots and outlets where they could get free internet as well as some outlets to recharge their dying cell phones. Starbucks closed at 4:30 pm because they only had two employees who could make it to work. Most of the restaurants were closed. The libraries were closed. It was no use. They wore coats, two sets of clothes, socks, and more in order to sleep that night but sleep did not come. Nevertheless, the power returned at 5 a.m. and the heat slowly began to warm up the house again. Now there only problem: when will they have adequate water pressure??

Thus goes the tale of our lives during the past couple of days. It hasn't been easy, but I think about how hard this must be on the elderly and families with young children. So it could definitely be worse.



I have several topics today that I'd like to discuss. Last time I stated that I would write something about how church hymns are often written as poems first. For example, consider the well-known hymn, "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross," written by Isaac Watts in the 18th century. Charles Wesley once said that he would give up all of his other hymns to have written this great hymn (hymntime.com). It's one of my very favorites. I studied this hymn as a poem while an English major at Georgetown College. I remember Dr. Ellers talking about this poem in that small classroom with just a few English majors. As a Christian, I appreciate the message of this poem/hymn, and I love the beauty of the language: "When I survey the wondrous cross, on which the Prince of glory died. My richest gain I count but loss, and pour contempt on all my pride."  What beautiful vernacular. I love his use of the word "survey" because it asks me to actually STUDY or EXAMINE the cross as I look at it and ponder what Jesus Christ has done for me. The hymn writers of old clearly had a way with language. Another one of my favorite hymn writers is Fanny Crosby, a blind woman and missionary who often received only a few dollars for the lyrics of her hymns. One of my favorite Crosby hymns is "All the Way My Savior Leads Me." Fanny Crosby was another gifted poet who could explain her faith in a beautiful way.

One of my readers recently asked me to share more about a good book that I discussed, All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. This book is beautifully written and is still on the NY Times Bestseller List for hardcover fiction. It takes place in Europe in the 1940s. The first main character who is introduced is a blind 16-year old French girl named Marie-Laure LeBlanc who lives in Saint-Malo. in France. The second main character is a teenage orphan boy named Werner Pfennig who lives in Germany. The book tells the two stories of these characters during war time, but the two do not meet until late in the story. The girl is raised by her loving father, and the boy lives in an orphanage where he is forced to fight for the Germans during WW II. Werner seems to have a natural ability to repair and use radios, so he is enlisted to do this type of work for the Germans. Both Marie-Laure and Werner are young people who are forced to leave their homes against their wishes, and the war has made life unbearable for everyone in Europe. Even in the midst of great hardships, these young people find joy in the simple things and cling to the hope that their lives will one day be better. As I read the book I didn't expect that the two characters would meet. I was just happily reading two parallel stories without thinking about the connection. But they do meet briefly and they are both happy, but they are once again separated by the war. Read this beautiful book to find out how they met and what happened to them later on. It's a story that is so beautifully written that you won't want to put it down.

One of my readers recommended the book The Bridge on the Drina by the Yugoslavian, Ivo Andric. It was translated from the Serbo-Croat by Lovett F. Edwards. This is a classic example of a historical novel about the violent history of the Balkans from the early sixteenth century to WW I.  The book is a little bit difficult to read, partly because it's a translation and partly because it has so many difficult names in it.  I've read about half of it so far and look forward to completing it soon. I'm listening to another novel while I'm driving, a book by Sophie Kinsella called I've Got Your Number. So far this book is just as hilarious as the other books by Kinsella that I've read: Can You Keep a Secret?, Confessions of a Shopaholic, Shopaholic and Baby, Shopaholic and Sister, Shopaholic Takes Manhattan, Shopaholic Ties the Knot, and The Undomestic Goddess. Incidentally, a hilarious movie was made a few years ago about the Shopaholic books.

Now to continue my list of books that I've read since 1984:

1. Evensong by Gail Godwin
2. Father Melancholy's Daughter by Gail Godwin
3. "C" is for Corpse by Sue Graton
4. "N" is for Noose by Sue Grafton
5. Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith
6. No Longer Forgotten compiled by Charlene Gray
7. Once Upon a Town by Bob Greene
8. The Brethren by John Grisham
9. Gray Mountain by John Grisham
10. A Painted House by John Grisham

Stay tuned until next time...

Melissa

Books Set in Europe: Finding Characters in England, Sweden, France, and Germany

"Whether I like it or not, most of my images of what various historical periods feel, smell, or sound like were acquired well before I set foot in any history class. They came from Margaret Mitchell, from Anya Seton, from M.M. Kaye, and a host of other authors, in their crackly plastic library bindings. Whether historians acknowledge it or not, scholarly history's illegitimate cousin the historical novel, lays a profound role in shaping widely held conceptions of historical realities." -Lauren Willig





Today all of the teachers and students here in Durham, North Carolina are feeling the excitement that a little bit of snow and ice can bring to a state in the South. It's 9:30 a.m and I haven't seen a single car on our street, not even the newspaper lady. I seriously doubt that the recyling or garbage trucks will make it today either. But that's ok by me.  It's a great opportunity to catch up on chores or to just rest, depending on what is needed most. I will do a little bit of both and enjoy every single minute of this day. Th day will be topped off with an exciting basketball game tonight between the Kentucky Wildcats (my home state) and the Tennessee Volunteers. So, when in the South, I will do as the Southerners do: I will stay inside.



Today I'd like to discuss a few of the books that I've read in the past year that are set in Europe. I noticed that I seem to choosing such books so it may be a good conversation-starter. Last night I finished reading The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. I'm glad I downloaded this book onto my kindle because it's not something that I would want taking up space on my bookshelf. I did not enjoy this murder mystery/psychological thriller set in London with its themes of jealousy, anger, alcoholism, love,  and murder. Honestly, the book sounded like something that I'd enjoy, but I was very glad when the experience was over. Each chapter is told by a different female character in the story, whether it be Megan, Rachel, or Anna. Their stories intertwine, but the main character is Rachel, the one who is actually the "Girl" from the title. Rachel is a young divorced woman who shares a flat with a roommate. Her alcoholism has driven almost everyone away, but in the end it is she and Anna who unlock the mystery of who killed Megan. Even though Rachel is fired from her job, she continues to ride the early morning train so that her roommate would think that she was still employed. Every day she looks out the window of the train and observes the people that she sees. This is how the story all begins, with a character who imagines things about the people that she watches. Maybe I'm missing something -  a lot of people are reading this book  (see it on it the NY Times Bestseller List).

I'm almost finished listening to another murder mystery that is also set in Europe, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. This lengthy novel is about the disappearance of a 16-year old girl from a small island that occurred in 1966. The dying wish of an elderly wealthy man, Henrik Vanger is to find out what happened to his niece many years earlier. He hires Mikal Blomkvist as a private investigator for a year and asks him to try to solve the mystery. This book set in Sweden is about a wealthy family that has a lot of secrets, but it all comes crashing down. There is a large amount of sexual content in this book, and it also involves a variety of sex crimes that are too graphic to describe here. As in the case of The Girl on the Train, I can't say that I enjoyed this book. But sometimes I choose a book simply because I've heard of it. Maybe I need to change my criteria for selecting my reading material from now on.

I've read several other books that are set in Europe during the past year. Some of them are Paris: The Novel, All the Light We Cannot See, War Brides, Pastel Orphans, and Bonhoeffer. All of these are historical novels except for the latter which is a biography about the great German martyr and theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer. From the novel category I would choose Paris: The Novel and All the Light We Cannot See as my favorites, but I recommend all of these novels because they are well-written and because they reflect a time in Europe when there were so many things going on with World War II. I'm glad to see that All The Light We Cannot See is on the bestseller, and I agree with this choice. This book is beautifully written in a way that I can picture the scenes clearly as if I were there in war-torn Europe. It's a story of love, struggles, endurance, and hope. I strongly recommend this book because of its positive themes and the beauty of the story. My mother read this book and enjoyed it as much as I did.

Now for the next ten books that I've read since 1984:

1. When Night Becomes as Day by Denise George
2. John Robinson and the English Separatist Tradition by Dr. Timothy George
3. A Cure for Dreams by Kaye Gibbons
4. A Virtuous Woman by Kaye Gibbons
5. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
6. How Starbucks Saved My Life by Michael Gate Gill
7. The Ice Cream Queen of Orchard Street: A Novel by Susan Gilman
8. The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
9. Three Junes by Julia Glass
10. Evenings at Five by Gail Godwin

One day I'm going to put the titles of all of the books that I've read in the past 30 years on a spreadsheet. But for now, my card catalog system works for me. Next time I plan to share my thoughts on poetry, and more specifically, I'd like to talk about poetry as hymns of the Christian faith. Meanwhile, keep reading, keep drinking gourmet coffee, and leave me your thoughts on the weather, novels set in Europe, or some of the books that I've read.

Stay warm,
Melissa

College and More...thoughts on the road

"Everything of value in our world started at some point with an idle daydream. Dreaming helps us connect the dots. Dreaming is mandatory for seeing the world as it should be rather than how it is." 

-Born to Blog by Mark W. Schaefer and Stanford A. Smith


Today I'm writing my thoughts about books from a small town called Boiling Springs, North Carolina. Boiling Springs is the home of Gardner-Webb University, a private Christian university that is located about 10 miles from South Carolina and about one hour from Charlotte. Boiling Springs has one traffic light, a few stores, and a few fast food restaurants. Although it's a very small town, there are plenty of things to do on campus if you're a student. There are sports, clubs, volunteer opportunities, the honors program, campus ministry programs, dances, free movies, and much more. Recently the honors program students went out of town to go ice skating and it was at no cost to the students. They had a great time. Classes often go on "field trips" to attend job fairs or to learn more about a particular field. Our daughter is a proud Bulldog, and as such has had many opportunities to learn, to socialize, and to "try something different." The honors program takes their students to cultural events such as Shakespeare-in-the-Park in Asheville, and they can also be found at a new ethnic restaurant on one of their cultural enrichment nights. GW also has a strong travel abroad program, so our daughter has had the opportunity to spend time in Paris and French Canada. Gardner-Webb is a great institution of higher learning, and I will miss it in about a year and a half when I no longer have occasion to visit the beautiful campus.

Now on to the subject of books. Last weekend I read the book, Pastel Orphans, by Gemma Liviero. I read the entire book in just two afternoons, so if you're looking for a quick read, this one might be interesting to you. This book fits in the category that I've been focusing on in the past year, the category of historical fiction. The book is set in Germany during WW II. It's about a family in which the father is a Jew but the mother is not. The two children are never told that they are part Jewish because the parents didn't want the children to tell anyone their secret. The son has somewhat dark features, but the daughter has blonde hair and can easily conceal her Jewishness. The father gets sick and so must be left behind as the mother and children leave to live with an aunt. As the story unfolds, the daughter is kidnapped by a Nazi officer and her teenage brother leaves to try to find her. He faces many hardships in his travels, but he eventually finds his sister who has been "adopted" by the Nazi officer and his wife along with other children. We learn in this novel that the Nazis often kidnapped fair-skinned children for various sinister reasons such as to further the Aryan race, to eventually become wives of Nazis, or for a number of other selfish reasons. I've seen in this book that WW II affected ALL of Europe in a horrific way, and even when the war was over, there were many problems there for a long time. Pastel Orphans brings to mind a book that I read called A Woman in Berlin. It's the memoir of a well-educated single woman who lived in Berlin during and after the war. We learn that her suffering didn't end after the war, it actually became worse. The Russians entered the city and committed atrocities against many of the Germans who were left there. You may have noticed that seem to be reading a lot of historical novels that are set in Europe during WW II, but I guess it's because I want to learn more about this era in history.








I'm currently reading The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, a book that is also set in Europe (London). It has kept my attention, but it's a little too early for me to adequately write a review about it. I'm also listening to the book, The Girl With the Dragon Tatoo by Stieg Larsson, as I drive. More on that one later as well. I hope to start reading the book The Bridge on the Drina by Ivo Andric soon as well, thanks to a reader who recommended it.

OK, so I've been sharing the titles of books that I've read since 1984, so here are the next 10 books on my list:

1. The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
2. Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
3. South Pacific Journal by David and Nancy French (David is from my Ky hometown)
4. A Million Little Pieces by James Frey
5. The Moral Teaching of Paul by Victor Paul Furnish
6. Circle of Three by Patricia Gaffney
7. Flight Lessons by Patricia Gaffney
8. The Saving Graces by Patricia Gaffney
9. The Pursuit of Happyness by Chris Gardner
10. Sam Simpson: Architect of Hope by Carol Garrett

Let's keep the conversations going about books, something that we are passionate about because they enrich our lives by leading us to think, to imagine, and to dream. WE ARE PASSIONATE PEOPLE.

Have a wonderful weekend,
Melissa