As a Miner Searches for Gold

So I am now reading When God Writes Your Life Story by Eric & Leslie Ludy. Below is a quote from the end of the first chapter.

Think on that this week. I have a feeling I'm going to like this book.

Casual Fridays

Earlier this week (Tuesday maybe?) I was giving myself a facial at home and that got me thinking about so many fun memories I've shared with some of my closest and favorite girlfriends over the years doing girly things. So today, I'm letting you sneak a peek into one of those memories with me. (Cue up some Girls Just Wanna Have Fun and enjoy. And ladies, forgive me!)

Grillin' it up in one of our "Before" photos! 11/04/11

These four women are some of the best I know. This "Before" photo was taken sometime during the 11 o'clock hour at the slumber party to end all slumber parties.

Not only did we rock some facials, we all crammed onto the side of the tub together to soak our piggies in some hot, steamy water.

Our glowing "After" faces! (technically) 11/05/11

By the time we took this photo, it was well after midnight. Instead of going to sleep, we stayed up several more hours talking, giggling, and giving our best American Idol auditions to each other.

Amy, Dakota, Christina, Danette? You chics are the best friends a girl could ever ask for. Let's have another slumber party soon!

Feel free to share a memory that makes you smile in the combox, y'all, and do something fabulous this weekend!

Gentlemen

Let's talk a little today about what makes a "gentleman". Thackeray puts it pretty eloquently in Vanity Fair:

"Perhaps [gentlemen] are rarer personages than some of us think for. Which of us can point out many such in his circle--men whose aims are generous, whose truth is constant, and not only constant in its kind, but elevated in its degree; whose want of meanness makes them simple: who can look the world honestly in the face with an equal manly sympathy for the great and the small? We all know a hundred whose coats are very well made, and a score who have excellent manners, and one or two happy beings who are what they call, in the inner circles, and have shot into the very centre and bull's-eye of the fashion; but of gentlemen how many?"

From chapter 62 ("Am Rhein") page 613-614.

I have been very blessed in this life to have a true gentleman for a father and now a true gentleman for a husband.

From the time I was born, this man has cared for my physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. He taught me to be respectful to all people and to never tolerate disrespect from men. He has always told me that I'm beautiful, and he took me on lots of dates to teach me what to expect from a man and to never accept anything less than that. Most importantly, he introduced me to Christ and taught me God's Word from the time I was very small. My dad has been the most consistent person in my life. I have never heard him preach something from the pulpit that he does not live out daily in his personal life. I cannot possibly thank God enough that this man is my father.

Almost 3 years ago now, I married this man. He is now the one caring for my physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Throughout our marriage, he has displayed every aspect of the Fruit of the Spirit toward me consistently and lovingly. Love. Joy. Peace. Patience. Kindness. Gentleness. Goodness. Faithfulness. Self-Control. This man never fails to point me back to Christ and the Scriptures. This man never fails to tell me I'm beautiful. And this man never fails to hold me when I cry. I am so thankful that I waited for Cody, and I cannot begin to thank God enough that this man is my husband.

I was reading Ruth yesterday and this topic of gentlemen came to my mind when I read this verse about Boaz:

"Then [Naomi] said, 'Wait, my daughter, until you know how the matter turns out; for the man will not rest until he has settled it today.'"

Ruth 3:18 (NASB)

Ruth is one of the shortest books in the Bible, but I think it contains the story of one of the most noble gentlemen in history. This man Boaz took care of Ruth, a poor, widowed, foreigner, with no thought of himself or what he might gain by providing for her. Then, when Ruth actually came to him to ask for his aid, he did not rest until he was able to meet her request. This is a beautiful love story, and I would encourage you to read it. It's very short and you could finish it in less than half an hour. I'm so thankful for God's Word and how it has power and authority to instruct me in every area of life. Ultimately, my father could teach me what to expect from a man because he learned it from God's Word. My husband knows how to treat me in a way that glorifies God because he learned it from God's Word. What an indescribable gift!

Have you read the book of Ruth? Who do you think are some of the greatest Biblical or historical gentlemen? Do you have true gentlemen in your life? 

Let's Bust A Recap : Vanity Fair

Yes. It is finished. I have completed Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray. *cue the Hallelujah Chorus and bring on the selfies* This was my big novel for the year, y'all. 67 chapters. 680 pages. I began reading this monster on January 19 and completed it March 18. Not bad. At one point, I was on track to finish by the end of February, but my brush with death threw me off that track for a couple weeks. Let's attempt a recap, shall we?

Let's start off by talking a little bit about Thackeray and the inspiration for the novel that rocketed him into instant fame as an author.

William Makepeace Thackeray lived between 1811 and 1863. Vanity Fair was published in monthly installments in a London periodical called Punch during 1847 and 1848. After the last installment, it was published in book form and was an instant success, elevating Thackeray to the rank of major novelist. Rightfully so, believe me. The title and novel were inspired by John Bunyan's Vanity Fair in his enduring work The Pilgrim's Progress. In The Pilgrim's Progress, Vanity Fair was an ancient carnival on the outskirts of a town called Vanity. Permanently situated in the path that leads toward Heaven, Vanity Fair tried to lure men away from their proper spiritual goal and has done so since the beginning of time. (Ecclesiastes, anyone?) I had no idea that this was the inspiration for Vanity Fair, and it makes me a little happy that The Pilgrim's Progress is also on my reading list this year. Fun connection.

Vanity Fair is a historical novel set in the early 1800s with one of the main events in the book being the Battle of Waterloo in which the Duke of Wellington overthrew Napoleon Bonaparte. Now do not be deceived, this novel is hardly a history lesson. It is complete fiction with only certain historic events mentioned to mark the time in which the story is set.

Our narrative is cast with a host of colorful characters, too many to even begin to name. Many would say that the main character in Vanity Fair is Rebecca Sharp, but I would argue that Amelia Sedley and William Dobbin were given just as much attention and detail by Thackeray as Becky was. The novel centers mainly around three families: the Crawley family, the Sedley family, and the Osborne family (much to my chagrin as Osborne is my maiden name and I hated the Osborne family in Vanity Fair. *sigh*). Other major players include the O'Dowds, the Southdowns, and the Marquis of Steyne.

In Vanity Fair, Rebecca Sharp and Amelia Sedley could not be any more different from each other. Rebecca's ultimate goal is to elevate herself from her poor station in life by any means necessary. She is cunning, devious, and entirely wicked. Amelia, on the other hand, is the sweetest and most innocent of women, always assuming the best in people and forgiving even the worst offenses committed against her without question. As our story follows the lives of these two women, the contrast is undeniable, and you can't help but beg for justice as the tale unfolds.

I have mixed feelings about whether I would recommend this novel. I, for one, thoroughly enjoyed it. The writing was superb. As I have mentioned in other posts, it is complete satire and I found myself pondering the different vices of men and realizing once again that there is nothing new under the sun. I also found myself laughing a lot, and I got emotionally involved in the novel. I intensely disliked certain characters (good riddance, George! die, Becky!), wished others would just grow a spine already (c'mon, Amelia), and rooted for some wholeheartedly (GO DOBBIN!). Parts of the book disgusted me while others had me giggling gleefully. Vanity Fair is considered a classic and has inspired several film adaptations. I believe that all these qualities make a book excellent and worth reading. If you are an avid reader, I would highly recommend you taking the time to read Vanity Fair.

However, there were times of transition in the story that bogged me down a bit. Pages of introductions to places and people that, while setting the stage for what was about to happen, were overly wordy and hard to read. The narrative follows the lives of several people and is almost biographical in nature. Vanity Fair itself is subtitled A Novel Without A Hero, so if you like to read books based solely on their compelling plots, you may be disappointed reading Vanity Fair and give up on it before finishing.

All in all, I think Vanity Fair is definitely worth reading, but if you do decide to take it on, I would encourage you to really commit yourself to finishing it before you even start. If you read it, come back and leave me a comment so I can congratulate you and bake you some cookies. Seriously. I will.

On a final note, Vanity Fair reminded me of the Biblical book of Ecclesiastes with a cynical narrator throughout, and, in fact, the final words of the novel are practically taken out of that wise work.

"Ah! Vanitas Vanitatum! Which of us is happy in this world? Which of us has his desire? or, having it, is satisfied?--Come, children, let us shut up the box and the puppets, for our play is played out."

From chapter 67 ("Births, Marriages, and Deaths") page 680.

What about you? Have you read Vanity Fair? What is your opinion of it? Have I piqued anyone's curiosity? Has anyone seen a film adaptation? I watched the trailer for the one starring Reese Witherspoon, and I am very skeptical. It looks as if they would have you sympathize with Becky, and I am just not about that. At this point, I don't want to watch it, but if anyone who has read Vanity Fair would recommend any film adaptation of it, I am open to seeing one.

I still have a few quotes from the last few chapters of the book that I will probably be discussing here on the ol' blog so don't be surprised if this isn't my last word on Vanity Fair.

Peace out, cub scouts.

Casual Fridays

Strawberry season is in full swing down here, and is there anything as yummy as a big bowl of sweet Florida strawberries?? We have an entire festival dedicated to strawberries where you can get strawberry pie, strawberry shortcake, strawberries on a stick, chocolate covered strawberries: strawberries, strawberries, strawberries! My favorite way to eat strawberries is to cut them up, pour a copious amount of sugar over them, let them sit in the fridge overnight, and then sit and eat 'em with a spoon. Heaven. This is also the way to prepare them for strawberry shortcake if anyone was wondering.

I've been jamming to Nichole Nordeman's Woven & Spun album for the past couple days. 

She's one of my favorite artists and Woven & Spun is my favorite of all her albums. 

It's one of those that I can sing every word of every song, you know?

So our backyard is like a bird sanctuary. Seriously, you can't look out there without seeing sand hill cranes, ducks, geese, the occasional bald eagle, and a multitude of other types of water fowl. I think this is due in part to the fact that our next door neighbor goes out and feeds them daily. One time, we counted at least 23 pelicans swimming across the lake. Pelicans! This week there has been a mama duck hanging out in our part of the lake with her sweet little brood of ducklings. There are at least 6 of the little guys, and they are adorable. I tried to go out yesterday and snap a photo, but if I venture off the porch, they swim out too far away for me to get a good shot.

Link Love

Cheerful Insecurity : Can you relate to the need to turn your panic list back into your prayer list? I can.

Charity Has Power : This is a great review of the new live action Cinderella movie. To be honest, I haven't been interested in seeing this movie, but my brother texted me and told me I have to watch it, and then I read this review. Now I can't wait to see it.

The Bionic Arm : Stop it.   Just. Stop. It.   You have to watch this video.

#lisaleonard

20 Years of Faithfulness : Late entry, but I'm so proud of my parents and so very thankful for Faith Baptist Church!

And now I'd like to introduce a new segment of Casual Fridays that I've decided to call Colonel's Corner. This puppy, y'all. He is too much. He doesn't just lay down, he flops down. Hard. You can hear him no matter where you are in the house. I cannot tell you how much this cracks me up. He's such a drama queen. He also likes to growl and bark at his own reflection. Sometimes it's funny, sometimes he will not shut up. We think he's the greatest. 

Apparently, I will be giving weekly reports of my thoughts on The Voice. And it's official, y'all. Forget Paul Pfau, I am so on the Sawyer Fredericks train. I mean, really?! How is this guy only 15 years old?? He is amazing. He is my official Season 8 pick. If this kid goes home, there is no justice. Check out his duet in the battle round. I like this version of Have You Ever Seen The Rain better than CCR's. And make no mistake, I am a fan of CCR. 

What about you? Who's your favorite on The Voice? (I have yet to hear anyone speak up in the comments about this show. Am I the only one watching?) Do you have a favorite artist or album that you know every song? What's your favorite way to eat strawberries or what is your favorite summertime treat?

I hope you've had a stupendous week, and I hope your weekend is even better! Check back Monday for my recap on Vanity Fair. I finished! 

For the Love of Mozart

"A new world of love and beauty broke upon her when she was introduced to those divine compositions: this lady had the keenest and finest sensibility, and how could she be indifferent when she heard Mozart? The tender parts of Don Juan awakened in her raptures so exquisite that she would ask herself when she went to say her prayers of a night, whether it was not wicked to feel so much delight as that with which Vedrai Carino and Batti, Batti filled her gentle little bosom? But the major, whom she consulted upon this head, as her theological advisor (and who himself had a pious and reverent soul), said that for his part, every beauty of art or nature made him thankful as well as happy; and that the pleasure to be had in listening to fine music, as in looking at the stars in the sky, or at a beautiful landscape or picture, was a benefit for which he might thank Heaven as sincerely as for any other worldly blessing."

Vanity Fair, chapter 62 ("Am Rhein") page 613

For anyone who may be unaware, these two arias are from Mozart's Don Giovanni. Does anyone out there love the opera as much as I do? One of my favorite memories is from college when I went on a "study tour" in Austria, Italy, and France. A few of my musically-minded friends and I went to see an opera at the Vienna State Opera House. L'elisir d'amore (The Elixir of Love) by Gaetano Donizetti. Standing room only. Crammed in like a bunch of sardines. But, oh my heavens. Talk about awakening raptures so exquisite. If you ever get the chance to go to an opera, jump on it.

17 March 2008 : snapped during intermission

We Interrupt The Regularly Scheduled Program To Bring You...

Oh my word, y'all, we have lost our ever-lovin' minds over here. 

We got a puppy.

Let me introduce you to the newest inmate of the Hancock establishment.

We call him Colonel.

His mama is a gorgeous Irish Setter and his daddy is a poodle. He's about 16 weeks old. We picked him up last Wednesday night, and he has already stolen our hearts.

Are we crazy or what?

our first photo together : 03/11/15