5 Quick Things #263 🕯🕯🕯
walkable towns, Hallmark movies, 184 birds, & a bb gun
Hello from a cafe table still damp from the morning dew!
I just left a quick doctor's appointment, and since I didn't want to send this letter to you after noon today, I thought I'd pull over and finish it up while I sipped this coffee shop's morning offering of black drip. It's not as good as my beloved neighborhood third place, but it'll do. An old woman is sweeping the leaves off the patio, whistling as she works, and birds are pecking the ground for breakfast. This is a bounty for my morning.
We have one more week of school and then we're off for the holidays, which means today I'm up to my elbows in reading essays — this time, it's teenagers' assessments of whether Inferno is more a work of art or theology. Interesting ideas, of course.
This weekend I hope you find the just-right gift you've been looking for, you find some time to walk on some dirt, and that you play good music in the kitchen. If you haven't made time yet to watch the Muppets' Christmas Carol, rectify that situation (we are). And take one thing off your holiday to-do list — it's okay, you don't need to do it.
5 Quick Things ☕️
1. 📻 New episode of A Drink With a Friend! 📻 With Advent in full force and Christmas on its way, Seth and I keep it lighter-hearted in this episode. We share what's adding more joy to our days in the categories of movies/TV series, music, books, and habits. (Bookmark this episode's show notes for your upcoming holiday downtime…)
2. I’d not heard of the concept of “second ring relationships” before but I found myself nodding my way through this piece, affirming for the 6,429th time why I love living in a walkable town. “Friendly neighborhoods don’t just sprout out of thin air. ...If we want our neighborhoods to become communities, not only do we have to design for that, but we have to cultivate a certain set of social habits.”
3. You absolutely, unequivocally don’t need to plan a million activities for your kids during Advent. But what you do during this season does matter, both for your sake and theirs. Even though it’s geared towards newer homeschoolers of younger kids, this is wisdom for parents of all ages, no matter your circumstances.
4. This story made me smile: “I think more kids should have this understanding of their mission and their potential and their trajectory toward something beyond childhood.”
5. And finally, every Hallmark Christmas movie. “Chris.. or Ben… or whatever we decided to name him.”
Currently Reading, Watching, Listening 📚
The 25th: New & Selected Christmas Essays, by Joshua Gibbs
Quotable 💬
“A good conscience is a continual Christmas.”
— Benjamin Franklin #
Your Favorite Activity During Advent? 🎄
What a bunch of homebodies you all are. I’m right there with you.
Find this week’s poll here.
Quick Links 🔗
Become a paying subscriber of The Commonplace (and thank you!)
Come to Ireland! 🍀
Is it a big Christmas gift? Yes. Is it worth it? Also yes. We’re leading a pilgrimage to Ireland in summer 2023, and I’d love to have you join us!
Families or singles, younger or older, sure in their faith or questioning everything — come on along! My kids are going, so yours are most welcome as well. We've made it as affordable as possible while still experiencing the richness of Irish culture: music, food, high tea, whisky, farming, art, ruin-exploring, and more. It's a trip not to be missed, and it's a great way to make new friends and contemplate the things that matter.
Question(s) For You to Ponder… 🤔
What can you let go of?
Have a good weekend,
Tsh
p.s. 184 birds.
The 2022 Gift Guide! 🎁
