Sunday Sixteen Freewrite

Yay! Still going with the daily freewrites. This gets easier to do daily. It is a good discipline. 

Today, I started Advent Week 2 and the 13th Week of the Spiritual Exercises. It is interesting to go through something that you wrote. I asked myself, "Why did you include the long story of Ruth?" I have read this so many times to my men when they were kids (or at least the kids' version of it). I started to regret it but since it is part of this Week's Jesse Tree reading, I thought I would plunge through. I focused on praying through the whole book.

It was a memorable and life-changing experience. The words REDEEMER and REST really stuck out to me (they are "close relative" and "security" in many versions). I had a centering prayer time on this, and it led me into God's presence in such a beautiful way. And I thought it was too long to read. 

After this, I had such a lovely colloquy (conversation) with God. Many times I will listen to Scripture, but I think reading really adds such a lovely dynamic to it. I really saw things in this much-read story that I had never seen before. I am resting in some things this morning that I have had anxiety about during the last few weeks. I know he is redeeming some things.

Yesterday was lovely. After my time with God, George got up, and we went to Wise Cracks for our weekly date. We thought maybe it was a new owner because it used to be The Broken Yoke. Why did they change the name? It is not my favorite restaurant in town. But it had a nice vibe and nice servers (in the past, the servers have not always been nice, thus making me boycott it for about five years). It was quintessential Corvallis with the funky decor and a nice blend of families and college students. 

After this, we went to a nice store next to the restaurant. Apparently, it has been in town across from Starbuck's for years, but they recently moved to this new location (George said it used to be Les and Bob's Sporting Goods). It had lovely little things. They were quite spendy, but we found some things for grandma and our niece, Lisa. After this, we went to Many Hands Trading and the Inkwell. The stores here always decorate so nicely. Something that used to be the domain of Rice's Pharmacy, but since Carol Rice left, it is just not the same. We walked to the heart of downtown on 2nd street and were sad to see that the gelato place closed down. I wonder when?

Love my little town in the heart of the Willamette Valley. 

After this, we watch a little Man in the High Castle. Then George finished decorating the living room and I listened to my book, Half of a Yellow Sun (about the Biafran War in Nigeria - so well-written). I also fell asleep. Then we watched a little more of Man in the High Castle. (Will John Smith turn to the right side?)

We had a lovely candlelight family dinner too. I did a little bit more of what we did in the afternoon and then fell asleep. I was trying to stay up later. I think I did. I don't know what time it was. 

But I know it is time to go as the timer just went off.