I actually drafted this message in February and just found it again in my draft folder. So I’ve added a few fresh links to bring it up to date.
Personal good news - I just turned in my last final paper for this quarter of seminary. I had one exam this week and my good news from that is that I didn’t do as well as I should have but I didn’t let it slay me or get me down for more than about thirty seconds during which I felt embarrassed about silly mistakes and then moved on.
I now have five quarters left. Yikes! Plugging away, full-time, on two Masters degrees.
Substack now has an app where you can read all the letters you subscribe to.
The Courage to Stay Small, by Marilyn Gardner. The power of faithfulness in small things. May we stay small. I love this article, and the writer, so much. She is wise and vulnerable and sharp and funny. God, help me be faithful in smallness.
All Along You Were Blooming, by Morgan Harper Nichols is gorgeous. I read it this week while I wait to get her newer book from the library and I’m going to read it again next week. I sent several screen shots of poems to people I love. Incredibly this came out pre-pandemic, January 31, 2020.
This is such a great interview with ultra runner Camille Herron. It is fascinating that women ultra runners tend to get better with age and that they can outright beat men. There is still something mystical about the distance and what it requires of the body.
Recommended: Doing workouts from the 80s and 90s. My goodness these are hilarious. Cindy Crawford, Tamilee Webb, Jane Fonda, Kathy Smith.
People like Monica Lewinsky weigh in with their Wordle words and strategies.
Also recommended: dinner parties. Calling them “dinner parties” makes it sound fancier than it needs to be. Invite friends over, new friends plus old friends make a great combination for conversation flow. Cook good food that you spend more time on than you might if it was just you. Light candles, put on some music, ask interesting questions, and enjoy the evening. Also recommended: doing dishes afterwards with your spouse as you talk about how much you love the people in your life.
Don’t want to be a white savior? Avoid these three things. By Craig Greenfield and yours truly get a shout out.
The Gravedigger’s Wife, a Somali film filmed in Djibouti. We went to the Djibouti premiere last Sunday and it was lovely. Really fun to watch in a theater so crowded people were sitting on the stairs.
What’s your good things this week?
I just have a quick minute to add my Good Thing from this week, so all I have is this incredible hip/mobility/stretching routine on Pilates for Runners: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFJIskcF9iM
I don't know what it is about that specific little flow, but it does amazing things for me! haha
Sorry for the total lack of depth this week. Sheesh. :)