Considering The Lilies

My new living room

I dwell in a pink and white, shabby and chic mindset. My favorite magazines are Romantic Homes and Romantic Country. I am drawn like a moth to a candle to frilly, lacy fabrics in impractical white's or ecru's. I love china with rose patterns. I like candle light and fresh flowers in crystal vases. If I had money I'd be armed and dangerous in a Rachel Ashwell aisle.

However, I have three children, an emotionally disturbed cat, an enormous fluffy dog who has a wee wee behavioral problem, a three-legged frog and a kuhli loach. There is nothing , I repeat NOTHING frou-frou about the critters I dwell with.

When the cat peed on the arm of the love seat (no, never before!) call it a road to Damascus revelation or a gestalt shift. Call it anything you like. All I know is that I looked around my bare naked living room and suddenly realized something.

I liked it. I liked it a lot.

Two of the most beautiful memories of my fairly uninteresting life were touring Lancaster County Amish farmland and the Hancock Shaker Village in Massachusetts.

There is exquisite beauty in simplicity.

Jesus knew this. You'd probably never know this unless you study His words as He's been given a bad rap by too many over the years but if He dwelt on earth today He would probably be embraced as the numero uno guru of today's minimalistic movement.

Case in point: "Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these."

How true.

The words of the Shaker hymn Simple Gifts have been swirling around in my newly minimalistic head all week. It was a relatively unknown song written by Shaker Elder Joseph in 1848 until Aaron Copland introduced it to the world in his musical score for Martha Grahams ballet, Appalachian Spring, first performed in 1944.

Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free,

'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,

And when we find ourselves in the place just right,

'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gain'd,

To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,

To turn, turn will be our delight,

Till by turning, turning we come round right.

The Shakers were known for their taking in of orphaned children, celibacy and simplicity. Heck. I'm already two-thirds of the way there in my current life style.

I do believe I may be coming around right.

To listen to the song go here