Well may we rejoice and sing

by chuckofish

It has warmed up quite a bit (thank goodness) and I got out and about this weekend. I did the flowers at church first thing on Saturday morning and then ventured down to the city to go to an estate sale. Daughter #1 and I were so adventurous! It was a nice house in Compton Heights down by St. Louis University, the same vintage (c. 1903) as the house I grew up in with three stories and lots of dark wood. We got a couple of books and a tassel curtain tieback for the window in my office. We said hey to our friend Lamar (who gave us our Lamar discount). We stopped at Straub’s on the way home and treated ourselves to lunch which we ate back at her house.

On Sunday, church was wonderful, as usual, but the communion hymn just broke me down to tears. They streamed down my face and I was such a mess at the end of the service. My son laughed at me a little, but with love.

William Cowper wrote this hymn in 1771 and it still packs a punch. The old Anglican hymns are pretty much all we have left of the Episcopal denomination, which is really sad. And I doubt if they sing this hymn anymore.

In our adult ed class we continued to learn about Francis and Edith Schaeffer and the founding of L’Abri, the French word for “shelter,” because they sought to provide a shelter from the pressures of a relentlessly secular 20th century. As time went by, so many people came that others were called to join the Schaeffers in their work, and more branches were established. Even Bob Dylan spent time there.

I had plans for after church, but everything fell apart, as sometimes happens. But it was a nice afternoon so I went over later to daughter #1’s house and enjoyed having Mr. Smith balance on my lap for some Mamu scritch-scratches until too many people had the nerve to walk by the house and he lost his doggie mind doing his Westie duty (i.e. barking).

This strikes me as very true. “Our phone has given us a constant stream of information. One thing it hasn’t given us is boredom. What if that was a costly bargain? A priceless forfeiture? What if it turns out that downtime from the fire hose of infinite data is necessary for good thinking, and for good life?”

By the way, don’t miss 31 Days of Oscar on TCM this month. The next ’31 days’ are dedicated to celebrating Academy Award-winning and nominated films leading up to the 97th annual Academy Awards, which air on March 2. I couldn’t care less about the Oscars in 2025–I haven’t seen a new movie at the movies since 2006–but there is a treasure trove to DVR this month on TCM. For instance, The Sting (1973) and Double Indemnity (1944) are on tonight!

So sing an old hymn, watch an old movie, pet a nice dog. Enjoy your Monday!

“On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.” (Zechariah 13:1)