Lately, I’ve been a bit nostalgic for the way things were when I first started blogging. That was back in 2008 and let me tell you, it’s no small thing that I’ve stuck with this thing all these years. I usually try something new, get the hang of it, and them I’m done and off to the next thing. Maybe I keep plugging away at this because I haven’t quite gotten the hang of it yet…
Anyway, back in the day, people would write posts in which they answered five or six questions about themselves. They’d tag a few people and invite them to participate, too. It was cute, and it was quirky, and it got people talking. It was a way to get to know one another better. Do people still do that?
I thought I’d do a spin-off of that meme from back in the day, by sharing a few of my favorite things, because sometimes it’s nice to be reminded:
- Favorite movie of all time: This is one of my favorite questions to ask people. Rarely is anyone able to name just one. “Can I pick one in each genre?” they’ll ask. Or, “Can I just tell you my favorite director?” I’m the same way — I can’t name just one, but here are the ones that always top my list: “The Sound of Music“, “The Shawshank Redemption“, and “Rent“. I could watch these three movies on a continuous loop and never get tired. You’d get tired of hearing me sing along with Julie Andrews and Taye Diggs. (But eventually, I’d wear you down and you’d cave in and join me.)
- Favorite childhood vacation: When I was ten years old, my mother closed her eyes, opened the Atlas (remember those?), and pointed her finger onto the page. Colorado. So, we packed our things, my dad filled an ice chest with cheese crackers and vienna sausages, and we drove from our home just outside of Detroit, all the way to Denver. We stopped along the way to spend the night in different places (Nebraska was surely one of our stops), and we ate cereal out of metal bowls in a different hotel room each morning. We hiked to the bottom of Bryce Canyon, and then up again. We stood in four states at once, and we picnicked at rest stops along the way. It wasn’t fancy, but it was an adventure, and I’ve been hooked on adventures ever since.
- Favorite book: That may not be the right way to categorize this book. I don’t know if “Blue Like Jazz” is my absolute favorite book. Books are like movies in that there are so many good ones out there. But what “Blue Like Jazz” did for me was to show me that I am not crazy. My view of church and faith and all of that never seemed to fit just right. I often wondered if my faith was real, because I never heard anyone asking any of the questions I was asking about God and church and humanity. When I opened “Blue Like Jazz” and Donald Miller shared his faith journey with me, I cannot tell you what a relief that was! Like a giant boulder being lifted off my heart!
- Favorite hymn: Again, this is like movies. So many good ones. But, when I was nine or ten years old, I remember singing “Holy, Holy, Holy” in church one Sunday. I remember it just as if it happened yesterday. I was standing there in the pew, holding the hymnal all by myself, and reading the words as I sang them. We had a pipe organ, and an organist who knew how to play it. All around me, people were singing. If there’s one thing church people do well, it’s harmonize on the hymns. Well, these church people had the harmonies tight, and the organ was filling up every bit of space in that sanctuary, and I sang the words “casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea” and I couldn’t think of anything more beautiful in that moment. To this day, whenever I hear that hymn, I’m back in that sanctuary, holding that hymnal, and singing the alto line with everything I’ve got.
- Favorite color: I’ve always liked the colors orange, green, and yellow. “Carrots, peas, and corn,” is what I called them when I was little. Trouble is, I don’t like carrots, peas, and corn. Succotash, my grandmother called it. So, I tried to make pink my favorite color. And then purple. I held onto purple for a long time — well into my adult years. And then one day I realized that orange is really my most favorite color of all and I painted my dining room orange. When we downsized and moved into this fabulous rental house, our landlord had just one rule: “If you paint, please keep the colors neutral.” Honestly, that one rule had me paralyzed for a bit. But just last week I decided to paint the walls grey and use orange accessories with wild abandon.
Feel free to chime in, but don’t feel obligated. Surely, you’re basting the turkey, or putting up holiday lights, or travelling over the river and through the woods. Tomorrow, if you have a minute or two, I hope you’ll join me at The High Calling, for a taste from the center of the pie, because Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of all.