Posts Tagged ‘books’
The Restless Human Heart in the Search for Happiness
Yesterday, while driving my lively entourage from school, I entered into a dispute with my twelve-and-a-half-year-old son. Frustrated at his mother’s cruel infringements upon, what I considered, his all-too-free speech, he passionately retorted: “What about the First Amendment?” I could relate to my son’s bristling at limitations upon personal desire. Practically, all it takes is a mother’s encounter with her unruly toddler, wailing in exasperation as a contraband item is loosened from his iron grip to vividly illustrate the universal struggle to tame our desires. From our earliest moments, we consider submission to authority as infringing upon our freedom and, subsequently, our happiness.
Read MoreHow Boldness is Both Necessary and Attainable
If “true grit” is an unflappable determination in the face of any circumstances, however horrific, challenging, or dire, the question remains: is this a natural gift or an attainable virtue?
Read MoreThe Hiding Place: “The Ripple of Laughter” in the Darkness
How do people find hope in the face of flagrant cruelty or disdain? The answer, as the ten Booms poignantly and concretely discovered, is found in the One Who endured the greatest suffering of all.
Read MoreHumility & Wonder—the doorway to experiencing poetry
When we encounter a poem that is challenging, we practice bearing the tension of not understanding and approach it with humility and wonder.
Read MoreSeeking to See the Gift
“Everything is gift.” The theme of last year’s Well-Read Mom conference for the Year of the Giver seemed perfect. The idea sounds so beautiful. And yet still, I sometimes wonder, is everything a gift?
Read MoreHome: A Reflection on Seeking Amid Family and Motherhood
Listening to my husband read aloud “Two Old Men” to me and our children was one of my sweetest memories of 2022. And this introduction to Tolstoy led me to read Anna Karenina, my favorite book of 2023. This story of two old men, with all its beautiful lessons about pilgrimage, true worship, hospitality, and corporal works of mercy, seemed to me a story about motherhood and being a stay-at-home mom.
Read MoreWonder Makes Us More Human—and More Fun!
Women who live with wonder have a unique ability to impact their surroundings; they are the ones who create an environment in which people can thrive. Children are good at reminding us to see. Antoine de Saint Exupéry’s Little Prince teaches the narrator, “It is only with the heart that one sees rightly. What is essential is invisible to the eyes.”
Read MoreDracula and the Sacredness of Marriage
I love reading aloud to my husband. We have enjoyed this activity ever since we were dating, but for the past few years we’ve made it an intentional habit. As soon as the booklist was released for this year, I knew that Dracula would be our next readaloud.
Read MoreTo Be Charis in a World of Victims
Charis’s lack of a crisis of faith and her lack of acceptance of victimhood as her identity struck me. In a world where victimhood seems to be a surefire way to gain social status, what a refreshing and inspiring tale!
Read MoreVampires Aren’t Real, but Evil Is
This month, we read Dracula. That’s not what I was expecting from Well-Read Mom. But as I read the depictions of evil beating against Lucy’s window, I found myself silently urging her friends for greater vigilance in their fight to save her from its clutches; I saw clear parallels in my own life.
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