The phone calls started the night before and continued well into the morning: “Are you going?” “Do you think the roads will be safe?” “What does your husband say? What does your mother say?” I had been watching the weather forecasts just as intently as everyone else. And I was just as torn up about…
That was one of Mama’s most oft-repeated quotes, though she rather deplored its sentiment. It’s why, I think, she was always trying to acknowledge—if not preserve—the best moments in the life of our family, the moments in which we were most truly ourselves and most truly together. How we teased and rolled our eyes every…
It is the Sixth Day of Christmas. Without, the world is cloaked in gloom, dripping with rain and endless mist, but within the lights on the tree and the candles scattered about gleam with increasing warmth. I love this point in the season, when the rooms are tidy and set to rights, the greenery is…
This flurry of plansis over, over.And I’m sorry and glad together. Our bustling houseis sane now, sane now.And I’m sorry and glad together. “Sorry and Glad Together,” Karen Peris This lyric by Karen Peris of The Innocence Mission perfectly articulates my feelings on this ripe and radiant November day. It’s the first “normal” Monday I’ve…
It is the afternoon before Thanksgiving and I’m sitting for a moment by my kitchen fire with my tea (and a wee drop of sherry, just to celebrate all that’s been accomplished thus far!). The cranberry conserve, with its aromas sacred to this day since time immemorial, is simmering away on the stove, and the…
No joke—we were supposed to be spending St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland. We made the plans months ago, as soon as the date was settled for my Awards Ceremony in Oxford at the end of March: we would visit beloved friends in Northern Ireland and catch our Rabbit Room chum Andrew Peterson in concert. We…
It is the Feast of the Epiphany, and I’ve watched the sunrise—as I have almost every morning of this blessed season—beyond the sparkle and magic of my Christmas tree. I’ve seen the low-hung clouds turn lavender and then flush with gold, as if at some heavenly delight, and the old holly tree awaken, its branches…
Greetings, Friends! I really can’t believe it’s been nearly a year since I’ve written here! Not for want of good intentions, or even ideas, I assure you, but from an utter lack of time. Life has been good the past year—hard in some places and demanding in others—but intensely full. Back in January I found…
A friend and I were Chipotle-ing, talking Thanksgiving twists and turns—of college kids zooming in and out of our homes too quickly and rogue relations popping into town and offspring becoming adults with ideas of their own about how to keep holidays. What a mess we make this time of year, we agreed, despite our…
I started this post on Saturday and only finished it today. But here’s a glimpse into our Thanksgiving–easily the most meaningful of my life. I do hope that each of you had a special and restful holiday… Oh, how I love this time of year; this happy hobnobbing of autumn and Advent, the lingering glow…
Dear Friends, Greetings on this October afternoon-almost-evening. I’m sitting in the den with my tea, windows open to the brisk sweetness of an autumn breeze and the house fragrant around me with the scent of tonight’s pot roast supper. From the barnyard comes the occasional plaintive bleat of a sheep who’s decided it’s high time…
Some folks claim to be a “dog person or a “cat person.” Others say “I’m a people person”—I am particularly suspicious of these. I am a place person. A recent trip to New England is proof. My relationship with the region is not complicated. Having spent a chunk of my childhood in Connecticut, I am…
Face my direction, I wanna to see you better, dear. You’re a distraction from everything that I feel. ~ “Turn to White” by She and Him A week ago today, the spouse and I arrived at our getaway spot—a swanky hotel in the not-so-swanky city of Chattanooga. (Sometimes, the hotel is the destination.) Luke fetched a…
Disclaimer: The following represents a cornucopia of experiences, some of them exaggerated for dramatic effect. A composite, if you will. Names have been omitted or changed to protect the guilty. Congratulations! I say this with a megaphone, ticker tape—with gusto! I feel like I need these things to get your attention. Because your high…
April 8, 2018 I’m writing this post from my sunroom, looking out over the last golden remnants of a brisk-but-beautiful spring day. Behind me, the dogs are snoozing on the kitchen floor, and I know that my husband is sitting at his desk in the den beyond. Yes, my friends, we are HOME. Last Wednesday…
That’s how a dear friend described the stage we’re in with our rebuild, and it could not be more apt. After making a place together for 18 years, Philip and I are re-making it–in nine months. And while much of that re-making has felt like an endless slog towards a never-to-be-realized dream, since the beginning…
Just popping in to say that I’ve finally completed and dispatched the first installment in what I hope will be a weekly newsletter chronicling our restoration story. I’m still overwhelmed by your response to my query, and I sincerely hope I didn’t miss anyone who asked to be included. Please do not hesitate to let…
We are grateful, dear readers, for the time you’ve spent here on Golden Hours this Christmas. Lanier and I have enjoyed every minute. Reader Lorrie has won the drawing for a copy of The Awakening of Miss Prim. Congratulations, Lorrie, and many thanks to all who commented and shared Golden Hours posts on social…
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