Plot Points #30 💌
The Holiday but better, T-Swizzle (again), realistic operas, and loving the process
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Happy Friday!
Thirty weeks, huh? Thirty whole weeks of sending out this email with a consistency I often find hard to come by, and loving it more and more as I go.
Last week, I told a friend I have plans to vacate my vintage booth at the end of January. After she offered a few helpful suggestions on what might make running the business more efficient, I confessed that with my intention to start working somewhere part-time (I’m in the running for a library position!), managing our home, and continuing to edit my book, the booth simply requires effort I cannot give at this time.
With an appreciative laugh, my friend said she loved how I can pursue an idea and then set it aside when it no longer serves me well.
It’s true. I’m pretty good at recognizing when my capacity for a thing is at its limits. But more often than not, I set aside a project because I don’t know how to honor the process. I start only with an end goal in mind—usually affirmation of some sort, I admit—and then quickly become flustered and frustrated by my limitations. In short, I let the fact that I have to learn to do stop me from doing at all.
That has not been the case with my booth. I’m proud of the work I put into that little space and it is oh so fun! But it has been the case with a lot of creative outlets in my life, and I’m finding myself convicted these days about the time I’ve wasted wishing for perfection, longing for the benefit of the end result without appreciating the hard work of learning.
Advent is a season like that. It’s a season of sitting in the not-yet, looking for Christ to come here and be with us. It’s a time to discover just as much goodness now, in the waiting, as we experience on Christmas Day.
Pierce and I are living this out in real-time with his job search. What comes next…and when?
Sometimes, that’s not the point. Sometimes, the point is what awaits us here…
As we learn a new skill…
As we prepare to move to a new city…
As a child grows in our womb…
As we hope for Good News…
Ask yourself these questions: What is waiting with me right now? Grief? Fear? Excitement? How can I honor them as gifts I may one day open to see with joy?
I pray in this Advent you’ll remember that our King leaves nothing wasted. Not our tears, not our faith, not our confusion or expectation. Let’s wait with hope, yes, but let’s also not wish away the time we spend without answers to our questions. It’s our faithfulness in the here and now that will lead us to that joyful future, whatever may come.
Thanks for being here for thirty weeks. I hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as I have.
Point #1: Taylor deserves Time’s Person of the Year.
This week, I heard a Christian radio host gently decry Swift’s nomination because—in his view—Person of the Year has previously gone to world leaders like Winston Churchill and FDR, and Swift is “just a pop star.” Sir. Why do we always forget how much art matters to our souls? And why the masculine urge to push feminine art to the side? Disagree all you want, but in 2023 “[Taylor Swift] became the main character of the world.”
Point #2: All I want for Christmas is The Holiday at the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.
A few years ago, Pierce took me to see Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban at the ASO. Like, we literally watched the movie while the symphony played the score. It was outstanding. Next weekend, the ASO is playing The Holiday and, honestly, if I had a credit card, this is what I would use it for!
Point #3: Who needs another book list?
Me. That’s who. Maybe you, too? This one from preacher and ethicist Russell Moore is a diverse range of fiction, cultural commentary, autobiography, and politics. Moore is one of a handful of evangelical leaders I deeply respect, so give his list a try if you’re looking for something to challenge and move you.
Point #4: I want answers!
This publishing Q+A from author, essayist, and Pulizter finalist is a helpful round-up of some common concerns among writers, myself included. If you’re feeling stuck or discombobulated with a project lately, give it a read.
Bonus Point: I would watch these operas.
Get ready to be impressed…and then laugh your ass off.
Word of the Week
Laldy: (v.) A Scottish phrase meaning to do something with gusto. (Ex: “That house with forty-five Christmas inflatables is giving it laldy!”)
Reading in The Nook
I accidentally discovered this lovely audio version of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and decided it was high time I read the original! (Audiobooks count as reading, people.) The long-winded descriptions of the town, the townspeople, the weather, the food, and Scrooge’s internal dialogue are cozy, rich, and never short on humor. I love the descriptive language of that era and I’m so glad I finally checked this classic off my list.
I also picked up A Most Agreeable Murder by Julia Seales at the library this week because JUST LOOK AT IT! More historical fiction with humor and mystery and women who won’t behave properly! I love it forever amen.
(A housekeeping note: I have recently become an affiliate for Bookshop.org, so any of those links will earn me a small commission if you click over and choose to purchase. Thanks!)
“There is nothing better than a friend, unless it is a friend with chocolate.”
—Charles Dickens—
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“In short, I let the fact that I have to learn to do stop me from doing at all.” 🙋🏽♀️ It’s me, hi, I’m the problem it’s me. This one definitely hit home. ❤️