Hello everyone, and a happy Thursday to you!
In deference to my New England heritage, I must recognize the end of the Bill Belichick era by reminding everyone that Randy Moss once convinced Bill to dress up like a pirate and go roller skating.
The Part Where There’s an Essay: Lingering in the Light in January
I attended college in the middle of Pennsylvania, near Harrisburg, the state capital. At the time, the city of Harrisburg was so sleepy that the joke was “Harrisburg: it’s a capital, not a city.” If you drove in any direction for ten minutes out of the city, you were back in farmland.
The older homes scattered in the area frequently had candles in their windows. Window candles always appear in homes during the Christmas season in every other area I’ve lived in, but central Pennsylvania is the only place I’ve seen them year-round. They were a tiny symbol of hospitality that was quite common.
I tend to leave our window candles up at least until the batteries die after Christmas. All of our Christmas decor has been packed away since Epiphany, but the candles are still there. I wonder if my neighbors question my sanity as they drive by — did I just forget that the candles are there?
But no, I just find it comforting in the longer, darker days of January to keep the candles glowing. Darkness in December is magical and merry with anticipation. Darkness in January can be a cold slog. Coming home to a house with twinkling windows is a small comfort.
There are other ways I try to stave off the darkness; most of them have to do with light. After all the Christmas lights are gone, those timers go on my lamps. In the morning, we come downstairs to a few lights on. In the afternoon, the house gradually lights up as the sun goes down. I cannot tell you how this helps my mood and my energy levels. (If you are interested, here are the tiny smart plugs I use.)
This is less of an essay and more of a community project. If you’re finding helpful ways to endure the dark of January, would you leave them in the comments? Maybe we can help each other out.
For the Anglophiles
A work crew at Cambridge University uncovered some paintings from the 16th Century, as you do.
“Henry VII had a very weak claim to the throne, but became adept at using visual symbols like this to promote his kingship. The motifs continue to be tied up with the college's identity to this day, but as an early example of Tudor 'marketing', the wall paintings demonstrate the long history of something we think of as a modern phenomenon.”
Reads & Listens of the Week
It’s the time in our election cycle when I like to direct people’s attention to the existence of Dixville Notch, New Hampshire. “The population of Dixville Notch is six, and all of them are registered voters who expect to be there at midnight on Jan. 23 when the polls open.” Hilarious.
I always enjoy it when the Knowing Faith crew does a Q&A. This one touched on the Trinity, the enneagram, discipleship, and sushi.
And lastly, from Smithsonian magazine comes this story: Scientists Played Music to Cheese as It Aged. Hip-Hop Produced the Funkiest Flavor.
No soul that seriously and constantly desires joy will ever miss it. Those who seek find. To those who knock it is opened. — C.S. Lewis, The Great Divorce
I heard from someone recently that their friends throw an In The Bleak Midwinter party in mid January and this sounds like an amazing tradition to brighten the season
We too have timers on our lights so that they come on before things get dark outside. It does help. Also, candles. A pleasant smell, another source of glow.