Lanier Ivester 6 Minute Read The one thing that people invariably ask me when they see my sheep for the first time is, “Can you really tell them apart?” I never cease to be amazed and tickled by this. It’s like asking a mother of a blonde-haired brood if she really knows who’s who. I want to laugh out loud…
Lanier Ivester 8 Minute Read When Philip and I finished the last book in the Lord of the Rings trilogy I sat in silence for some time, the tears chasing one another down my cheeks, wrapped in a lovely melancholy over the end of the Third Age and the pilgrimage of the fair folk beyond the Grey Havens. I couldn’t…
Lanier Ivester 6 Minute Read Last week my sister-in-law had two of my friends and me for lunch. It had been arranged before Christmas, a flurry of emails having saved and secured the date, but as I set out on that dour January morning, it seemed to me that the timing of our little gathering was exquisitely providential. My mood…
Lanier Ivester 2 Minute Read No matter how old I am, or how many times I’ve read it, Little Women will never lose its first charm for me. I’m indulging in it all over again this summer and rekindling my girlhood friendships with Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy. Indeed, I really do feel like I grew up with those dear…
Lanier Ivester 3 Minute Read I’ve been thinking a lot about obedience lately. There are things in life that we know we should do. Things we have been called to do, and specially equipped by God to fulfill. Each of us has our own place in the Body, our own heaven-sent ‘to-do list’, and throughout our lives we all get…
Lanier Ivester 2 Minute Read I love that Jesus taught in stories. That has always given a lift to my writer’s heart, has always made the effort of putting pen to paper seem so worthwhile. In His parables He comprehended the fact that we are a story-loving lot, that tales of the just and the unjust are a universal language…
Lanier Ivester 12 Minute Read I received an email some weeks ago from a dear younger sister approaching marriage. It was peppered with question marks, sincere queries from a woman that truly wants to be the best wife that she can. As I read them over, I thought how blessed her future husband already is to have a girl so…
Lanier Ivester 3 Minute Read Here are some simple ideas for making the ceremony of afternoon tea a special occasion. Homemade scones, or ones from the bakery, are delicious served with fresh strawberry jam and a dollop or two of this decadent cream. Mock Devonshire Cream: Whip ½ cup heavy cream with 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar till stiff peaks form….
Lanier Ivester 2 Minute Read What could be a more delightful prospect than dinner on a tray by the fire (Chinese take-out, at that!) and a pot of orange blossom tea, and a brand new (old) Elizabeth Goudge book? I was so excited to start this one last night—I felt like I was spending the evening with an old friend….
Lanier Ivester 2 Minute Read January is an excellent time to reaffirm our priorities and desires for the kind of life that we want to live. In this yearly assessment of past projects and future hopes it is of great value to ask ourselves the striking question that Wesley’s Methodists were wont to probe one another with: How is it…
Lanier Ivester 2 Minute Read It’s deliciously cloudy out–and suitably chilly–and I’m relishing to the prospect of a day in my kitchen full of happy bustle and preparation for Thanksgiving. We’ll be going to my parents’ tomorrow, and we’re looking forward to a day on the farm with Philip’s family on Friday. But today is ‘at home’ day and I…
Lanier Ivester 2 Minute Read One of my dearest friends moved away today. To be sure, not away away—Birmingham is little more than a two hour drive, and I visit there quite often as another of my dearest friends lives there as well. But she’s not here anymore. I can’t meet her for coffee on a busy errand day, savoring…
The End.
The End.