5 Quick Things #298 🌧

good cities, transformed suffering, plucked-up courage, & gallimaufry

Hey there,

Hallelujah—it rained yesterday! I woke up at 4:30 a.m. early Thursday morning to the sound of thunder, and it was glorious. We haven't had rain in central Texas in forever, and it shows: the ground is canyon-cracked and the grass has become straw. But the sound of water, real water, falling from the sky was the sound of hope. It was a remembrance that, "Oh yes, that’s right—it doesn't stay scorched-earth dry around here forever." Kyle said he may or may not have teared up witnessing the rain splatter on his truck windshield today.

Tate's texting me about beautiful Midwest early fall temps, and I'm glad for her. Truly. I love that our kiddo gets to witness a real autumn—it's been since we lived in Oregon that she’s had that.

I hope you've had the kind of week that winks at you, just like we've had around here. Thank you, God.

Wheat Field in Rain, by Vincent van Gogh (1889) #

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5 Quick Things ☕️

1. 📻 New episode of A Drink of a Friend! 📻 In this one I'm chatting with

Katy Carl

, a writer and the editor of Dappled Things, about why the pursuit beauty is essential for ALL of us our in everyday, ordinary life. We also sidetrack about her new short story collection, AI (of course), and a bit more gallimaufry and sundry that appeals to Commonplace folk.

2. This week I continued my series Lex Orandi, and my basic idea could be summed up with this classic Chesterton quip: “A Catholic is a person who has plucked up enough courage to face the incredible and inconceivable idea that something else may be wiser than he is.”

3. My friend

Claire Swinarski

celebrates her birthday this week by writing about—what else?—suffering. “...Suffering is coming for every single one of us. You can either look at the beam of light, or look along it. Christianity is not where suffering never occurs; it’s where suffering is transformed.”

4. Katie Marquette of

Born of Wonder

uses her memory of backpacking around Ireland phone-less to wonder what else she might be missing by carting around a phone. “Who knows the conversations I’m not having, the people I’m not meeting? Who knows the ways I could have been asked to rise to the occasion, to problem solve, to trust or hope or experiment or try a new way? There are so many things I’m not doing because they are so easy to do from my phone.”

5. A finally, I enjoyed this episode of New Polity—they’re currently exploring the idea of Good Cities, and in this one they say “it’s time to get mad at cars.” How have cars reshaped the city and become necessary for life?

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Currently Reading, Watching, Listening 🎧

This Reading Adventure playlist

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Quotable 💬

“The crickets felt it was their duty to warn everybody that summertime cannot last forever. Even on the most beautiful days in the whole year—the days when summer is changing into autumn—the crickets spread the rumor of change.”

- E.B. White

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How do you take your coffee? ☕️

I had no idea we had so many coffee haters around here… 🤯 As for me, ninety-nine percent of the time I drink it how God intended: straight-up plain black.

Find this week’s poll here.

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Mark Your Calendar: Thursday, October 5 🗓

Fabled Bookshop, the delightful favorite bookstore in Waco, Texas, is hosting an evening with me for a signing and Q&A to celebrate First Light & Eventide. Enjoy drinks and an evening among kindred spirits as we welcome autumn with a spirit of gratitude. It's a fantastic shop!

Bring your friends and family — it’s free!

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Quick Links 🔗

• 📐Create your own Rule of Life

• 🎧 Listen to A Drink With a Friend

• 📔 Order First Light & Eventide

• 🇬🇷 Join Me in Greece: June 20-30, 2024

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Question(s) For You to Ponder… 🤔

What’s a beloved book, album, movie, or show you could enjoy again this weekend?

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Have a great weekend,

- Tsh

p.s. Amazing.