Lynette Bishop Snell

Pure joy and happiness. March 27, 2009

This is my cousin Jennifer. She is 44 years old. Because of complications during her birth, she suffered brain damage and has been mentally challenged ever since.

The other day I found her swinging on our swingset, watching a kite being flown in the distance. She was utterly, completely happy. It was a great thrill for her to swing and watch that kite toss about on the wind. I will never forget her look of tranquility.

She has the joy of a child and is blessed enough to be able to have that for the rest of her life. It’s a good lesson for me to remember to enjoy life. It is a blessing from God and worth my time to slow down and enjoy what He has given me.

Thanks, Jen, for the reminder!

Agape

From Dictionary.com:

Origin:

1660–70

a⋅ga⋅pe

2   /ɑˈgɑpeɪ, ˈɑgəˌpeɪ, ˈægə-/ [ah-gah-pey, ah-guh-pey, ag-uh-]

–noun, plural -pae  /-paɪ, -ˌpaɪ, -ˌpi/ [-pahy, -pahy, -pee], -pai  /-paɪ, -ˌpaɪ/ [-pahy, -pahy]

1. the love of God or Christ for humankind.

2. the love of Christians for other persons, corresponding to the love of God for humankind.

3. unselfish love of one person for another without sexual implications; brotherly love.

4. love feast (defs. 1, 2).  

I felt this Agape love recently. I experienced it. I absorbed it. I was overwhelmed by it and I do not think I will ever be the same.

Walking amongst Christians who truly love me because of Christ’s love for them…it’s the most humbling sensation and one I hope will never, ever go away.

It has changed the way I love my husband. It has changed the way I love my children. It has changed the way I love my family and friends.

I hope and pray that anyone who reads this post has either known this love or will know it one day in their life.

God is good and He truly loves me. I know I cannot ever be worthy of that love but after experiencing it so completely, I know I want to try my best for the rest of my life.

Mamah Borthwick February 5, 2009

“Loving Frank: A Novel” (Nancy Horan)

In her debut novel, Loving Frank, Nancy Horan delves into the private world of Frank Lloyd Wright and his ongoing love affair with Mamah Borthwick Cheney.

The affair was scandalous, mainly because they were both married, just not to each other, when the affair began. Borthwick was married to Edwin Cheney, a great follower of Wright’s architectural skill. He encouraged his wife to agree to having a home built by Wright…a decision I’m sure he regretted for the rest of his life.

Mamah Borthwick was not the average turn of the (twentieth) century woman. She was a feminist and lived her life as true to her feminist ideals as possible, even at the expense of others. She did not make her decisions lightly, nor without great remorse, but she remained true to herself.

While I disagreed with many of her life choices, I also struggled to balance those same choices with the struggles every woman faced in the early 1900s. She was a suffragist, yet wanted much more for women than voting rights and equal pay. She wanted freedom for all women.

I strongly recommend this book. I found I could not put it down, even when I was disgusted or irritated with Borthwick throughout the story. The fact that Horan, the author, strove to weave the fabric of her story as close to the truth as she could discover, only made it more interesting.

I think the Chicago Tribune’s review sums the book up perfectly:

“An impressive and admirable debut…If FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT is the reason people will pick up this book, MAMAH BORTHWICK is the reason they will keep reading it….”

Examiner.com January 30, 2009

Recently, I signed up to be a local blogger for a website called Examiner.com. I agreed to be the Indianapolis Human Interests Examiner and blog about local stories one would not necessarily hear about on a main stream basis. How hard can it be?

Harder than you might think. I am struggling to focus on stories that are actually interesting and not merely page fillers. It’s difficult to find stories, too. I hope one day to be inundated with stories, but my market is local (Indianapolis) so it limits me to stories that really capture peoples’ eyes.

Keep checking my site…who knows, one day I might uncover a great story that will be picked up by CNN or FoxNews!

Best laid plans… January 29, 2009

My writing subconscious clearly has been trying to break through the wall surrounding my blogosphere. I want to write but I just won’t take the time. So I think my brain is taking over.

About three weeks ago, I woke up with a brilliant blog post. I crafted it to perfection in my head and knew it would draw in thousands of readers. Perhaps even millions. Then I promptly fell asleep.

Now I have no idea whatsoever…not even a hint…of what that blog post would have been about.

Oh well…as I said, the best laid plans….blah blah blah.