Ordinary Aesthetics

Sensitivity to aesthetics can become second nature if you attune yourself to it.  I am naturally drawn to truly beautiful things like an internal flame.  I side with Plato - Real Beauty is inextricably connected to the Good, and the Good with God.  
As I have pondered the beautiful things in my life I am content.  I am grateful.  I want to cultivate this sensitivity in my children.
In a world fraught with ugliness in attitudes, morals and behaviors, it is hopeful and refreshing to acknowledge goodness and beauty.


Today, I want to acknowledge Japanese civility as a source of good and beauty.

"Fall down seven times, stand up eight"

~Japanese Proverb

And . . . no pushing!

Winston Writes for Me

My Dog Winston writes for me!
Can't you see how lovely he looks illuminated by computer backlight?  
He can construct a perfectly clever turn of phrase without blinking an eye!


Alright, I admit to a little exaggeration here, but have to acknowledge that Winston does help me write.  At least he keeps me from being too lonely while I write. He sits at my feet, sits on my lap, gives me tender little licky kisses.  He adores me, even when my efforts at scintillating insights fail miserably.


Sometimes I relish being alone with my thoughts, but there are times when the inertia of academic loneliness is really hard to bear.
I don't mean to sound dramatic or overly Emo here - but the fact remains that there are times when I feel like a community of one.  


I am grateful for friends far and near who are willing, even if my ramblings don't suit their fancy, to listen, read and comment on my thoughts and pages.  My most sincere thanks goes out to them today!  

Signs Along the Way

You know you are in Britain when even the signs are prim and proper.

Jeeves, I knew there was a reason we decided to forgo the Bentley and 

opted for the Smart car!

 Even the bothered neighbors across from the pub are polite!  Thank You!

 No one would stoop so low as to say: KEEP OUT!

The Queen kindly requests that you refrain from treading upon the royal lawn.

 I can't even figure out which side of the car I am meant to be on, let alone figure this one out.

 Tee hee hee!  I get it, but -- Tee hee hee!

Gotta love the formality!

And then you go to France and find the signage either

 

Really disturbing or

Super cheesy - but hey, in their defense, the French are really good at cheese.

Blooming Inspiration

I adore purple irises.  They are bold, beautiful, regal and inspiring.  This morning I stopped by my local floral shop to pick up something for a friend and noticed that they had 10 stem bunches of purple iris! 

Voila!  The inspiration that I needed for the day.  
Usually, all I need to banish mental dullness is a small token - something simple and beautiful to generate all kinds of creative thoughts and motivate me into action:
Baking my luscious chocolate cake from scratch
Sunday afternoon walks
A tiny box of really amazing chocolate
Finding the perfect accessory on sale
The smell of rain
My scratchy purple plaid Scottish throw blanket
Reading books with my children
A long nap in crispy sheets
Real letters in the mail 
I am just grateful that today the inspiration was irises.

Women in Purple

Aelia Pulcheria was the daughter of a very influential mother, the Empress Eudoxia who was criticized by John Chrysostom for her unorthodox Christian devotion.  He publicly denounced Eudoxia’s lifestyle in his sermons: “You who are in the flesh make war against the incorporeal one.  You who enjoy baths and perfumes and sex with a male do battle with the pure and untouched church.”[1]  

I can't help but think that Eudoxia is given an unfair assessment here . . . I mean Chrysostom doesn't like women generally, so how can we expect him to praise those who bathe, take note of personal hygiene or enjoy their role as wife and mother - especially when they threaten his authority.  Eudoxia was an extremely popular model of lay Christian devotion and was often seen worshipping amongst the common townspeople.  

Now Pulcheria her daughter, as a young orphaned teenage girl, assumed responsibility for her brother's imperial training (age 13) and dedicated herself to a life of virginal asceticism (age 14).  She is unduly influenced from an early age by patristic influences and carries on their agenda in the imperial household.  She is well known for her instrumental role in sanctioning the findings of the Council of Ephesus that proclaimed Mary Theotokos in 431 and literally shifted the way that female sanctity was defined by the Church.  

I have to admit to a love/dislike relationship with this woman.  

I like Pulcheria because:

She strategically places herself in a position of power and influence.

She heads the Theodosian household at an early age and makes a decent success of it.

She can't help that she is essentially a puppet, used according to the distorted view of women by some of the patristic Fathers.

I dislike Pulcheria - or at least the portrayal of Pulcheria because:

She seems to privilege the ascetic model for female devotion despite the incredible legacy of matrons in her family.

She seems to promote the iconography of Mary in a way that excludes the majority of late antique Christian women (wives and mothers) from the model of holiness.

OK, so now that you are completely bored with this post - let me just say this:

I think it is important for scholars to tread lightly with criticisms of people from the past -- lay out the facts as clearly as possible, but realize that life circumstances and "Images" of individuals are often obscured according to other's agenda.   In this case, I think there is something pivotally askew in presenting wives and mothers as less worthy than the holy virginal ascetics -- Oh, Pulcheria, I think your purple shoes would be very difficult to walk in and I promise to try to write you justly.

[1] HOLUM, K. G. 1982. Theodosian empresses: women and imperial dominion in late antiquity, Berkeley, University of California Press.

Monday Morning Dreaming

If you are like me, Monday morning can be both promising and daunting.  Another week is starting, another litany of tasks and milestones is looking me in the face, my children have mixed feelings about leaving the comfy weekend nest and the remnants of a true Day of Rest did not magically disappear overnight.  
My favorite way to ward off Monday blues (that for me always start on Sunday night), is to spend a few minutes on Monday morning daydreaming . . . 
This morning's reveries found me in Paris.  

Wasn't that nice?!?  Relatively inexpensive travel within Europe makes a quick jaunt to the City of Lights really easy and really tempting.  These photos were taken last spring.  With spring in the air, albeit mixed with fluffy transient snowflakes, I couldn't help sharing a little vie en rose.
Now, back to today's writing goal:
Women in Purple: Helena vs. Pulcheria - Tomorrow's post will elaborate.

Trade Secrets!

For me, 60% of the writing process is organizing my research material and honing my reading notes.  The remaining 40% is made up of the "mental stretch" required to tie my conclusions together and psych myself into believing that I can actually eat this elephant one bite at a time! 

Due to unfortunate experience, I can tell you that procrastination never produces the best results.  The closer I am to a writing deadline, the more anxious I become and, sad to say, the more difficult I am to live with.  

I don't want Chapter 5 to sow seeds of resentment in my heart or the hearts of those I love!  

RESOLVED:

• I will follow my simple chapter outline and write about a single topic per day -- or maybe over a few days. 
• I will work on my chapter for two hours per day (x 6 days/week) in a consistent and diligent manner.  This beats 30-35 hours during the week before deadline.
• I will pass along my "work in progress" for others to review before I send it to my advisor.  (Particularly difficult thing for me to do!)
• I will not allow myself to become an ascetic hermit during the last week prior to deadline (Beg. of April), nor will I need to because I will be confident in what I have produced.

OK, I think I sound more OCD than I actually am . . . 

All neuroses aside, I will let you in on a couple little writing secrets that ALWAYS vanquish writer's block:

1. If you are bored with your writing or just generally so bored that you don't even want to think about writing -- do it anyway, just for 15 minutes.

2. Go somewhere else to write.  If the kitchen table or your desk aren't to your liking - go somewhere else, anywhere else.  (The public library, the study of a friend or relative, the park, a local internet cafe or bookstore).

3. Make sure you are comfortable -- I personally love socks and feel rather clever when I am wearing a pair of fun argyles or my luxe favs - cashmere (ok, cashmere blend).

4. Have a snack -- low blood sugar is never good for generating genius ideas!  

Note to self who loves to snack while writing: yes, celery and peanut butter is just as lovely as chocolate chip cookies!