Currently Reading Slightly Married By Mary Balough, Mary Balogh see related

The Quest for the Sacred Coffee

Dunkin' Donuts...ahh, New England!

My parents came into town last week for my mom's birthday, and I decided that this would be a fabulous chance to show them around my new neighborhood. My father and I share an, um, appreciation for decent coffee--lucky for me, I've moved into a part of the world where others do as well--so I offered to drive him to a Dunkin' Donuts for a Saturday morning coffee run. I promised him it was only about 5 minutes up the road.

Have you heard the one about asking for directions in New England? You ask some guy on the street and he goes, "Yo, whacha gotta do es go ova da bridge, pass da dunkin donuts, yo no, da one whea da guy in da flannal es...den you go pass da old fia station, pass anoda dunkin' donuts, and den make a lef." (I mean no disrespect to New Englanders. In Oklahoma it would go something like, "Sho, ma'am. Yah need tuh tuhn at dah end a da fiel' whea da ol' silo broke down, pass da baptis church on da coh-nah an make a raht at da wahllee wuhld." --That's Wal-Mart for those not from the South.)

Anyway, my Dad and I load into my car and we head out. "It's just up this way!" I inform him exuberantly. (This is, after all, one of my first trips out without either my aunt or her roommate directing me.) Oh, a side note...in Oklahoma the roads are laid out on a grid: they're at 1-mile increments and they cross at right angles.

So we head blithely along for a while and I see a sign and an arrow toward "Stonington." "That's great!" I point out. "I KNOW it's toward Stonington. We're going the right way!" Dad looks at me somewhat quizzically and asks, "You HAVE been here before, right?" I hesitate and then respond, "Well, I've been this way before. Yeah."

We drive along for a while, following the signs toward "Stonington" and I begin to make small talk. "That's a great old wall on the right, huh, Dad? Covered with snow? I just love finding stuff like that. And see that house over there? Beautiful!" He, ever the Southern gentleman, humors me, although by this time I'm SURE he knows... "Oh, yes. And all those trees. Very pretty!"

At some point along this jaunt, I realize that I've definitely never been this way, even though I KNOW the Dunkin' Donuts is in Stonington. Oh, well...never fear! It's just on the OTHER side of Stonington...so I decide to drive THROUGH Stonington to the Dunkin' Donuts. Sure.

And then I come to a lovely little historic-y district next to a pretty little bay (or perhaps lake...not sure). And lo and behold-a coffee shop! "Hey, Dad! Let's just stop here and get some coffee. Whaddya say?" I ask hopefully. "Well...I'd actually really wanted to get Dunkin' Donuts...let's just keep going until we find it. How about if we ask that guy?" He points to a guy walking a dog LEAVING this coffee shop, holding a latte, which at this point I might've paid HIM for.

"Excuse me, sir? I was wondering if you could help me find Route 2?" The guy kindly stops and says, "Wel, whacha gotta do es, tun aroun hea, go da odda way until it tuns into a one-way. Den you gotta hang a lef an go pas da ol fia station an pas da railroad-cuz da only wa outta Stonintun is da way yous came in." I gulp. "And that'll get me back to Route 2??" He pauses, sips his coffee. "Whea's Route 2? Thad'll getcha back to Route 1."

Thanks.

So we go back out the way we came, and head all the way back home. Sans coffee. When we get almost back to the house, I decide to take one more shot at it. I go the opposite direction out of the street and realize, again, that I've gone the wrong way, but THIS time it's REALLY familiar. "I know! This is Route 2!! We just have to turn around here, and go through the rotary, and we're there!" Dad smiles kindly. It's been 35 or so minutes since we left the first time.

I turn around, and come back around the corner to see (drum roll please)

a catholic school mass exiting across the street.

That's right. An entire school, complete with nuns, was emptying out of a church and crossing the street to the school. Older kids holding the hands of squirmy elementary schoolers, everyone in either a sweater and tie or knee-highs and plaid skirts. Church bells pealing merrily away.

Good grief.

However, after the ENTIRE school made it across the street, Dad and I continued on our quest, found the rotary, found the blessed pink and orange sign and were able to go inside to claim our long-awaited holy grail: Dunkin' Donuts coffee.

I guess the point of this post is twofold. One: Never trust signs in New England, because there are probably multiple versions of the townships listed. "Stonington" on the sign was actually "Old Stonington," and the Dunkin' Donuts was in "North Stonington" anyway. And two: sometimes what you were looking for all along really WAS just "five minutes" away-- you just made a wrong turn out of the house and took a 45 minute detour.

That's life.

Currently Reading Leader's Guide : Design for Discipleship By The Navigators see related

Merry Christmas!!

The new picture of me is also of my aunt's dog, Sweet Pea. I've wanted a dog of my own for a while now, so this is one of the greatest perks (so far) of the Northeast: I get to play with a pet, but not have to do too much else (besides the occasional "outside" runs).

Christmas dinner came off famously, I thought. All the food came to the table at the same time. Good cooks will tell you how difficult this is. I've cooked previously, but helping to prepare something with that many dishes (8 plus appetizers) for that many people (7) was quite the feat!

I'm learning a lot around here.... 

Currently Reading David Great Lives Series: Volume 1 By Charles R. Swindoll see related

Henry David Thoreau

I was an English Literature major in college.

One of my real loves is reading. When I found that I could actually get good grades at something AND graduate with a degree in it, I was hooked. So I signed up to discover literature (albeit in a rather sheltered environment) and decide what I enjoyed...and what would get me A's.

And one of my favorite "reads" of all time was Henry David Thoreau.

I find myself at a point in my life when I can identify on an entirely different level with this thinker. It is as though a Christian (in the very ancient sense of the word) transcendentalist has found her way to Connecticut and is now determined to find God's plan...

As I recently wrote to a good friend, I have never been a fan of "doing something just because it's unexpected" or of being rebellious (for rebellion's sake). I don't really care that people go, "wow, Beth, we never expected that of you!" as though "little Beth" has something to prove to the world.

Forget that.

But I do want to be "deliberate" in the sense of the transcendentalists.... 

So my question is, what quote speaks to your situation? Why?

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practise (sic) resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience, and be able to give a true account of it in my next excursion."--Walden

All the things we always WANTED to do for God

What if the time really is short?

It's a funny thing, sometimes, going back to the state you hail from after an absence...you notice different things than you saw before...and I'd wager to say that the amount of time this phenomena lasts is directly proportional to the amount of time you have been away...but I digress.

I was recently in back in Oklahoma and had an interesting experience at a local Christian bookstore. (Certain other friends of mine may be familiar with this particular store.) I was almost aimlessly browsing through the book section (my absolute favorite, though followed closely by the music section) for a "curriculum" for a Sunday School class. (For those of you who didn't grow up in a denomination, "Sunday School" is akin to "cell groups" only they happen at the church building/location on Sunday.)

Being the happy researcher that I am, I endeavored to use all available resources: I asked a helpful-looking elderly gentleman wearing a store nametag. (Bingo!) He directed me to a shelf (a SHELF!!) of such materials, and then launched into a long-winded discussion on the types, kinds, and dates published of said materials.

But the part of this education which struck me was when he mentioned that there was no curriculum for "older Christians." "You know," he said, "the ones who've TAUGHT these classes for 15 years, who could probably find any verse blindfolded, etc." Then he went on to say, "It could have a section on planning spiritual retirement. Now we have time to do all the things we always WANTED to do for God..."

And the thought almost took my breath away.

How does this happen? However difficult it is to discern the desires and plans of God, surely it is worth pursuing. I know, I know, the power of the ordinary...desire to provide, have a family, etc...but I wonder if some of the average Christians we see are plodding through their days, are trying to ignore (or perhaps, after years of trying, successfully ignoring) the "dream they once had."

There are few people able to hold these things at bay. Most of us forget the prophecy (see Cair Paravel and the four thrones) or dream we had once if too much time elapses. We become driven, instead, by those things which I DO think CAN be wonderful: the ordinary.

Most of us, instead, decide that "the dream" is best left for another day. I don't think people should all run, unprepared (spiritually, mentally, physically, etc) into, say, the mission field. But I DO wonder if many need to take a second look at this prevalent concept of spiritual retirement.

Why is it we lull ourselves into this notion of "having enough time"? Oh, I'll do that AFTER I graduate/get married/have and raise children/make more money... (ad nauseum). (See Luke 9:57-62).

Maybe Jesus was right. Maybe we do need to throw ourselves wholeheartedly into pursuit of Him (even if that means "just" actively seeking His will). Maybe we need to press on even when His answers don't come right away. Maybe having our hearts really open to His leading will position us for His answer. Maybe we need to look again at our priorities.

What if it's true?

Snow in Connecticut

Those of you who know me are aware that my home state--while known for weather--is usually not one you'd think of for snow. http://newsok.com/storms/

However, as I'm working on forming a new life in New England, one of my first lessons has been the weather. This is aside from coffee-syrup...thank you Millers!(http://www.xanga.com/miller_schloss http://www.matthewmarkmiller.com)

First order of business upon deciding to stay: ask for coats to be sent from home via UPS.

So, this morning, I peeked out my window to see a lovely blanket of snow covering the pine trees outside, and smiled, thinking I could roll over and go back to sleep...surely the schools were closed, right??

Nope.

Instead, I bundled my little Southwestern-self into a scarf and headed out to warm up the car. (My aunt, with whom I am staying, is a high school sign-language interpreter and she has graciously allowed me the use of her car. Downside: I gotta drive her to school--in the snow.)

I don't think Oklahoma even has snow ploughs! I'm almost positive we drive them in from Kansas when there is an occasional blizzard. Here, apparently, the local government has decided to use resources untapped in the Great Plains to its benefit. I saw a Ford truck (of which we have plenty...thanks, Texas) with a Boston Red Sox sticker on the back and a makeshift road-scraper on the front blithely swishing snow onto the curbs. Nice.

Adaptation is a beautiful thing. Should be interesting to see what happens when winter actually hits.