He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers - Psalm 1:3
Henry and I live in a quirky 122 year old wood house within a funky part of town called Logan Square. When Henry bought the house about a year and a half before he met me, he saw a lot of potential. For those of you who have visited, you have seen some of Henry's imagination at work. For those of you who haven't ... well you will just have to come and see for your self, because the surprise is part of the total experience. But back to what I was saying. The house has a lot of potential. Which also means it needs a lot of work! I think Henry and I are only just now feeling like it is getting to the place where we want it. This week is especially a crunch moment since we are trying to get the upstairs apartment ready to rent. Renovations include completely redoing the bathroom and kitchen; completing the tile floors in both areas; and putting down new flooring and fixing windows in the rest of the house. Oh and painting too!
And now for the clincher: Henry and I get to travel a lot. Just kidding. That statement doesn't really qualify as a "clincher." Especially since most of you knew that already. But traveling does prevent us from frequenting the house as often as we would like. Neither of us have felt very settled recently. Even with all the repairs.
Our most recent trip was to Oregon and Washington. These states are beautiful during the month of June, which is the end of their spring. Everything was in bloom. One of the places we went along the Columbia River Gorge resembled a rain forest with large trees covered in moss, water catching inside the tree nooks and birds with long blue plumage flitting through the foliage. Needless to say, I found some good tree roots to include in my collection.
Yes, I am slowly building a collection of art using the idea of tree roots to depict "rootedness" and "home," or the lack thereof. I have completed two paintings and am currently working on a paper sculpture around the same theme. Like everything else at the moment, the results come after strenuous and tedious efforts.
To tell you the truth, even inspired writing is wearisome after funneling all the other thoughts through my brain from working on the house, making art, and being "uprooted" with all of the traveling. Maybe even adjusting to married bliss should be included in that list although I think "bliss" should be emphasized. Marriage has treated me quite well. And so has Henry. Nonetheless, it has been rather difficult to sum up my experiences on paper.
Even in the Good Chaos that life brings us, it can be easy to forget the only home and root that really matters: Our Father in Heaven is always near. I often remind myself of this and hope that I not only remember it but also that others may see that I am rooted. Permanently.
For those of you who have a relationship with Jesus, please talk to him about Henry and I as we navigate through our crazy life!
And to all of you, thank you for being such wonderful friends and family.
