Author: amandasexton

I am a wife, mother, writer, and reader. I also homeschool my five kiddos in a very eclectic style, 13 years deep. I am a Texas girl, Orthodox Christian, and l love to cook! I write about nurturing the heart, mind, and body.
books · faith · fall · http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post · seasons

The Dying Season

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“The Garden of Earthly Delights” (the “Millennium”)  Hieronymus Bosch

About ten years ago I discovered and fell in love with the literature of Flannery O’Connor. Her form of horror let me experience the cathartic nature of the grotesque (and literature’s role in purging), and how grappling with evil is an intricate part of the journey of faith. Often times I believe horror to be deeply and honestly religious. Confronting my own evil is what it is all about, and this is horrifying. Literature by O’Connor, Twain, Poe, King, and the like make good people nervous.  It’s hard to accept that ordinary people do evil things, I do evil things. That is what should scare me the most….not the Other, the delusion that evil exists in the Other and not in me. Every year about this time I revisit Flannery…I love her writing.  

 Autumn is a time of year when the themes of death surround. Grey rainy skies, cold dark nights, bare branches on trees, leaves falling purple, yellow, orange, and red, and gusts of chilly wind.  It’s beautiful…this dying season.  It is the perfect time of year to be frightened, a little unnerved.  And yet there is a peaceful quality to autumn that reassures me that death has no sting…Pascha, death has passed us over. 

Halloween brings out all of my ghosts..the things that haunt me.  Fear is a wonderful gift, a purging gift.  I would not want to live in this fallen world without fear.  A fallen man without fear is a monster.

For a good autumn read try:
A Good Man is Hard to Find
&
Wise Blood 

faith · fall · family · food · homeschooling · http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post · learning · marriage · motherhood · parenting · projects · seasons

How to Get Your Life Together In a Day

amandasexton2 Comments

Sometimes I make things so complicated, and truly that is unnecessary.  I realize there are circumstances that require extreme measures, but my life is not one of them.  Why do I get so stressed and anxious…wound up like an eight day clock?  I suspect it is because I am tired, just plain tired.  Being tired is not a sign that my life is falling apart.  Maybe it is a sign that my life is good, that I have a full and wonderful life…so much to be thankful for.

However, when things start piling up, pressing in, and coming undone I know it is time to do something different, settle in and refocus…just tweak things a bit.  There is no need for me to take a magic eraser to my whole life or to go through everything with a fine toothed comb.  Just a gentle redirection is all that is needed.  Gentle, but thorough.  You see, the bones are good, the underneath is still in tact, the anchor is what holds this ship in times of crazy schedules and busy days.  In times past I would begin a complete overhaul when I felt this way, but I have learned that extreme makeovers are most often the acting out of obsessions.  You know…that running dialogue in your head that makes you feel thin and shaky, nervous and irritable.  We moms have to learn to be gentle, even with ourselves.  

A very dear friend asked me the other day if I believed that sometimes there are cases where a person who was once whole could now be broken, with no hope of being whole again.  I listened to the question and took my friend seriously. I told this friend that, yes, I think it is possible, and that she did not have to be whole.  As I have thought about our conversation I have come to the conclusion that we are all broken in some way, and that it is most likely that we always will be.  Being whole is not about being completely put together…there is a reason that all the King’s horses and all the King’s men could not put Humpty together again.  Life comes down on us, it presses us, it breaks us, and we fall apart.  Once we have been broken there is no way to be whole again…not the kind of whole that we desire.  Being whole often times means we do not want to suffer this life and its trials, we long for naivety and simplicity.  But, those who get out in the world and bare burdens, get hands dirty, work hard, walk with damaged people, befriend the unfriendly, and try to be a part of the world will always be broken..it is inevitable.  The only way I ever imagine that I can avoid this is by shutting the world and people out.  In the end, I would rather be broken.

And this can apply to practical areas of my life as well.  If I desire to be out in the world living and learning with my kids, if I value relationship over everything else, if I put people on the top of my priority list, well then other things suffer…my house, my laundry, my body, my put togetherness.  I always feel that my life is a little undone, a little unkept.  But, in a way this is intentional.  I have chosen other things, to me they are more important things.  When criticisms come, and they will, I must be prepared to OWN my own life and choices.  I must be rooted and grounded in my heart.  I must also be willing to be honest, truthful with myself most of all.  This is the way that I face my life head on and how I deal with brokenness.

Today, as I was dealing with all of the emotions and stress that obsessions cause I waited for the panic to pass.  I got still and a wonderful thought came to me.  It does not take much to Get Your Life Together, Mandy.  In fact I am confident that it only takes one day of gentle internal work to feel better. This is because I am not expecting too much from myself or anyone around me…we are all broken. It is easy to be gentle when I recognize this.  Here are a few things I am doing today to regain a sense of confidence and beauty…how I am getting it together.

I Am…

  • Recognizing the dialogue in my head.  I am not trying to change it, just being aware of the Editor in Chief, the voice that keeps bossing me around, criticizing me.
  • Writing this post to share my thoughts, getting them out in the open.
  • Talking to my mom on the phone and enjoying our friendship.
  • Putting on a fresh face and a nice outfit.
  • Planning a trip to the pumpkin patch near our house.
  • Lighting candles.
  • Letting my kids be tired as well, we have been very busy.  No drill sergeant barking or correction.  
  • Taking a survey of my pantry and planning the meals I want to cook this week.
  • Doing a few loads of laundry.
  • Taking care of a speeding ticket that I got a few months back.  I made it through my probation period, and a big stress is off. 
  • Opening windows and doors to let the cool fresh breeze in.
  • Drinking Ceylon Tea..a new favorite and a wonderful gift from my husband.
  • Being quiet and just doing the next thing…gently walking through this house…room by room… accepting and being very thankful.
  • Praying the prayer, “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me a sinner.” Over, and over again.
  • Accepting the financial stresses of a large family lifestyle and owning my spending choices.
  • Letting my kids be who they are…not requiring that they be caught up, on target, or ahead. 
  • Washing dishes in warm soapy water.
  • Listening to sounds…a lawn mower, Mockingbirds, eggs boiling on the stove.  Just listen.
  • Smelling the things cooking, the fresh autumn air, Samuel’s little head, Elinor’s sweaty puppy dog yumminess, out of the dryer laundry.
  • Waiting for my husband to come home so I can give him a hug.

This is what my day is shaping up to be…a wonderful day, a blessed day, another day to be a mom, wife, daughter, friend. 

   

family · home tour · parenting · projects

A Room of Their Own

amandasexton6 Comments

When I read Virginia Woolf’s A Room Of One’s Own a few years ago I was struck by the notion that women are in desperate need of personal space, literal space.  The reality of having a special space that is all my own is something that I cannot manage at this time in my life.  I cannot even go to the bathroom by myself.  But, I remember a time when I did not share everything, I had a little place to be by myself and dream, sing, pray, read, and think.  I had a room of my own when I was young.

It is this memory, and the warmth it creates that inspired me to create a special place that my daughters call their own, a room of their own…even if they do share the space.  For my oldest two daughters, sharing is all they know, they have always shared a room.  But, it is ok…it is their own room together. I love listening to them giggle at night, sharing secrets, whispering things to each other that they will never tell me.  Sisterhood is nourished in shared space, their special place.

Being the oldest in a large family has its perks, but the perks come at a price.  The older children bear a kind of burden that the littles will never know. When the littles are big will they remember all the little sacrifices their big sisters made for them, all the times that they were shown kindness or allowed to be a part…the gentleness, the patience, the caring?  Just last night I overheard my oldest two making Christmas gift lists for their little sisters, and I think a major homemade doll furniture project is underway.  This makes me hope…maybe this lifestyle creates and nourishes true affection.  I try to keep that in mind when I see attitudes, bickering, and drama.  

As Queen Mother, I like to inspire and facilitate affection…to encourage it.  When my older girls give, I like to give back.  In this way I hope they feel the rewards of their kindness, hard work, and selflessness.  It keeps things reciprocal, and shouldn’t all relationships be reciprocal?  I do not do these things to be fair…fairness is overrated and impossible in large families.  I do these things because I love my girls, and they love me…we are family.    

I like to give back to my older girls by treating them to special things like going to a favorite restaurant, spending time alone with me, buying a new outfit, picking up a specific treat when I go grocery shopping, giving them time alone when they request it, and making sure that I help them pursue their own interests and passions.  And that leads me to what I want to share with you in this post.

A new room of their own!

For a couple of weeks we have been working on this project together… refreshing paint, buying new bedding, ordering new accessories, and having a ball. I taught the girls how to paint a room, make and hang curtains (no sew), and we even made a fun little wall accessory out of twinkle lights.  They have been wanting a more “teenagery” (as they call it) room.  So here it is!  I hope you enjoy the before and after pictures.  As you will see, this room was in desperate need of a make-over.

Before & After

We ordered a few posters of their favorite musicals and movies and framed them; The Sound of Music, Gone With the Wind, The Princess Bride, and Meet Me in St. Louis.  
An Audrey Hepburn of her in her famous gown from Sabrina has still not arrived.  
The girls can’t wait to see it.   

          

The girls love reading in bed…

On Caroline’s Night Stand
Robinson Crusoe
The Story of the World Volume 2
Hans Christian Anderson
Lord of the Rings
Alice in Wonderland
Out of the Silent Planet
On Addy’s Night Stand
The Trial and Death of Socrates
The House of Hades
Eusibius The History of the Church
Pride and Prejudice
The Norton Anthology of World Literature
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
  • You can visit my Pinterest Board and see all the links and inspirations.  I warn you though, I am not a good Pinterest person.  I cannot seem to get into it that much.  I did find it useful when trying to put together this room.  Maybe some afternoon I will sit down with a cup of tea and discover what everyone else seems to love, but for now I remain a novice. 
  • We spray painted the bookshelf and lined the back with contact paper from the Dollar Store.
  • We also spray painted the lamp shades.  I have watermelon pink spray paint dust all over my garage. 
  • We have a navy and white chevron rug on our wishlist…maybe for Christmas! 
For those of you with older kids who do a lot, how do you keep the balance?  Do you do special things for those who help you carry a heavy load?  

Welcome Home Wednesdays
faith · family · Orthodoxy

Orthodox Mission {A family, a community}

amandasexton1 Comment

 I had never really given much thought to Orthodoxy in America until I began attending St. Aresenius Hermitage.  It was then that I began to understand the sacrifices and commitment it takes to spread the Gospel, to break ground in a foreign land, to start from nothing.

That is just what is happening at St. Arsenius Hermitage.  It is nestled in the hills and pasture of North Texas, a few miles outside of a small community that does not have an Orthodox Church.  In fact, the folks of this community and surrounding areas have never even heard of Orthodoxy, much less encountered a monk in robs shopping at their local home improvement store.  The newspaper did a bio, and Father Gregory’s picture was cropped among the happenings of small town Texas life.  He looked out of place, but his warm smile fit right in.

I wonder sometimes how Orthodoxy will ever permeate this Texas culture, sometimes they seem worlds apart; Orthodoxy and Texas. And then I look at my family, and I have hope.  Orthodoxy makes all things new, it takes a proud Texan like myself and makes me new…without requiring me to loose my twang.  Although, a priest once commented after I had chanted during Holy Week that he had never heard anything like it.  I did not know if I should laugh or be offended, I chose to laugh.  I am what I am, and if Orthodoxy is truly catholic I know there is a place for me.

Trying to become Orthodox has required that we as a family make new traditions.  And that is hard.  We are constantly trying to balance culture with church.  We are not Greek, and we are not Russian, or Arab, or Romanian.  However, Orthodoxy has a way of getting in the cracks, and slowly we are becoming American Orthodox.  What will this look like?…who knows, we have a LONG way to go.  I know because I watch the work at St. Arsenius, and I can see the longevity of the call.  How long will it take for this small community in Texas to embrace the monk in the country?  Longer still will be the inclusion, the familiarity, the ease that signifies Orthodox community life.  It is a long and hard work.  We Texans are willful and self directed, I could think of no harder place to break ground.

The story of St. Arsenius Hermitage is very inspiring.  A family of twelve, a husband and wife and ten children have opened their hearts to the call.  They labor alongside Father Gregory, and it is back breaking work.  When I look at all they have sacrificed to help bring an Orthodox presence to this area I am truly humbled.  They have given land, money, and labor.  But, it is the sacrifice the family makes that breaks my heart.  To begin this work the family has given up time, a resource that can never be renewed. All I can offer is my understanding, support, and heartfelt thanks.  We help when we can, and I wish we could do more.  It is a hard work.

We (my family) are a mission field…our community is a mission field…Texas is a mission field…America is a mission field.  Orthodoxy is young in America.  I am ok with that, and I understand that my conversion is also in its infancy. I am starting to see and learning to accept that becoming Orthodox is a long and hard work, but one that is full of life and reward.  Lord have mercy.      

For a good read on Orthodoxy and the South go here…
Orthodoxy and the Christ-Haunted Culture of the South
        

faith · homeschooling · learning · motherhood · parenting · pregnancy · saints

Liturgical Life: August & September

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August & September

August and September were full months indeed!  Baby Samuel was born on the 13th of August, and afterwards I observed my forty days of rest and healing.  Father Gregory came to the hospital to give a blessing after birth, and it was nice to have him there.  We had a small brunch at our house for Samuel’s eighth day naming, and Father Gregory came to our house for the first time.  We really enjoyed having him here and praying at our altar.  My churching took place at St. Arsenius hermitage.  As the end of the Church year approached I felt somewhat disconnected, until the Feast of the Dormition.  We did not do anything special as far as services.  The Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos was two days after Samuel was born.  It was a wonderful way to end my pregnancy.  Samuel’s name day was on the 20th of August, and we celebrated with a kiss and a blessing.  I was just not well enough to do anything more.

The beginning of the Church year, September 1, did not feel like a beginning to me.  I was still recovering, and the quiet of this house felt good and healing.  My brother Joshua’s name day falls on the same day.  We called him and said special prayers for him that night.  My husband is his Godfather.  I spent part of the day observing and praying before the Nativity of the Theotokos icon on September 8.  It meant more to me this year than in year’s past.  On September 14 we sang our Elevation of the Holy Cross song and studied the icon.  Sophia’s name day was on the 17th and we took her out to eat Asian food, her favorite.  We talked about St. Sophia, a favorite in our family.

What we are reading:
The story of Saint Sophia.

Special Prayers:
Prayers for the beginning of the Church year and the school year.

Special services:
Blessing after birth.
Eighth day naming.
40 day churching.

Special Projects:
We gave the plant shed a makeover.  We turned it into a little schoolroom for Addy and Caroline.  We bought an air-conditioner and new laptops for the online classes.
Beginning school year – September 9  

cleaning · cooking · http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post

Housewife Challenge

amandasexton1 Comment
My friend Lori and I were driving home together last night from a 4-H food scavenger hunt at Central Market, and we got to talking about being in a house keeping rut.  We had just stuffed ourselves with Sushi and were feeling pretty good, but this house thing was bothering both of us.  She said her house was out of control, and I mentioned that I needed to get my house around for company this weekend.  We left off the conversation with a half- hearted promise to do better and get things whipped into shape.  Well, I got up this morning moving slower than normal and just feeling blah.  So, I came up with this challenge.  It is not intended to be a full house cleaning challenge…just a jump start to get the engine running.  It made me laugh, and I texted my friend to see if she was down.  Because of her schedule, we are going to do this tomorrow.  That got me to thinking.  Maybe the ladies who read my blog would like to get in on the fun!  So, if this is something that you think is doable, send it to a friend, or maybe a few friends, and have fun together getting ready for the weekend. Feel free to customize your own challenge, make it your own.
It’s on tomorrow…you and me Lori!
  

I challenge you to a Housewife challenge, a silly insane game that has no winner:

General Rules:
Text to begin each challenge.
Text after you finish each challenge.
No cheating…(like getting the kids to help, or stuffing stuff under beds, couches, or in ovens.)

 Level 1: An entire home rescue pick up.
 Here are the rules:

  • You can only spend 10 minutes each of 3 rooms. 
  • Send a picture to your opponent of the “before” of each room before the timer begins. 
  • When the timer goes off send an “after” shot of the same room. 
  • Start the music and turn it up loud. 
  • When the timer goes off clean like mad.

When we are done with this phase of the game we level up.

Next Level: Kitchen in 30 minutes.
  • Dishwasher and sink must be unloaded.
  • Dirty dishes must be dealt with.
  • Counters must be wiped down.
  •  Floor must be swept.
  • Trash must be taken out.
  • Sink must be shined.
  • This challenge must be done with red lipstick on. (or any bright color you can find.)
 Next level: Bathroom in 20 minutes.
  • The toilet, shower, tub, and vanities (including the mirror) must be cleaned. 
  • You must sweep and spot mop the floor.
  • Trash must be emptied. 
  • This challenge must be done in silence. (That includes no moaning and groaning in disgust.) 

Next level: Car in 15 minutes.

  •  Everything from the car must be put away or thrown away. 
  • The front dashboard must be wiped down. 
  • This challenge must be done barefoot. 

Next Level: Dusting in 10 minutes. 

  • Living room must be dusted entirely. 
  • Master bedroom must be dusted entirely. 
  • This challenge must be done with sunglasses on. 

 Next Level: Floors in 20 minutes. 

  • All floors that can be vacuumed must be vacuumed. 
  • This challenge must be done in socks. 

Next Level: Dinner in 15 minutes. 

  • You must start dinner and have all components going. 
  • This challenge must be done in high heels. 

After the Housewife Challenge is complete…meet me at Mickey D’s with a hat on your head for a big Dr. Pepper. Loser pays, I know there is no loser, but it sounded good!  Drinks are on me!

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Old Mother West Wind’s Children

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Just something I thought would be a great share for fall.  I am taking my littles to the park today with a quilt, a picnic, and a copy of Mother West Wind’s Children.  It’s going to be a wonderful sunny day, great for a nature hike.  I will be using my Boba Wrap…baby wraps are wonderful, don’t you think?  And I love their slogan…Freedom Together.  


Find all these wonderful nature inspired characters at
family

Sunday Night Tradition!

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It’s the end of a long week…technically it’s the beginning.  But, for us Sunday feels like the end revving up for the new…

We’ve snacked around, I hardly ever cook on Sunday evenings. A bowl of cereal here, leftover pasta there…

A Marie Calendar Apple Pie cools on the stove waiting to be smothered in Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla ice cream…

My oldest is surfing on Pinterest, I am reading a few comments and making some of my own, we are lost in cyber space…

Two are playing Rock Band on the Wii, one on the drums, the other playing a mean guitar…

The toddler is talking to her farm animals on the living room rug…baby boy is swinging.

Daddy is reclining, trying to find something to watch on antenna TV….only a few minutes more…

He clicks over to channel 13, the trumpets sound, Laura Linney begins her creepy monologue, and instantly Addy and I are both on our feet, instantly uprooted. “What’s on tonight?”…

Daddy laughs and swears he’s going to make an alarm clock that chimes the trumpet sound for both of us…nothing would be better to wake to I admit…

It’s PBS…Masterpiece Classic, and tonight it was The Paradise.

The sun is asleep behind the hill, Monday is creeping in, but we are squeezing out one last bit of wonderful from the weekend…PBS…it’s our Sunday night tradition.

Did you know that you can get Masterpiece Classic updates in you inbox?  Go here for the details.  Or like Masterpiece on Facebook to stay in the know.

January 5th…Hear We Come!

  

faith · http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post

A Safe Haven

amandasexton8 Comments

Not too long ago I was let in on a little secret. My husband told me he reads my blog. This was such a sweet surprise, and his readership means more to me than any other. I love readers, and I love comments. That is the one of the major reasons I began blogging – to meet new people and make new friends. However, this process is slow, and should be. I am not interested in mass communication, I just like the idea of a little corner of the internet being mine – a place where I talk with friends, share ideas, laugh a little, a place to be inspired and challenged.  When my husband told me that he read my blog I was taken aback, I am not used to him being privy to my private world of writing and women stuff.  It really surprised me how it made me feel.

We women keep some things to ourselves, especially the private world of woman conversation.  Our talks with girlfriends…and our mothers…the exact kind of conversations we have here in the mommy blog world; these are hidden away. We women have an amazing private life of the mind and heart also.  Like my journals… no one reads my journal but me!  Thank goodness!  (This blog is a VERY tame version of my paper journal.)  I think when I die, my family will find half written in, doodled up spiral notebooks all over my house.  My journaling is spastic and sporadic.  My notebooks are littered with poems, horrible artistic sketches of random things, scriptures, letters I never intend to send, rantings, quotes, philosophical debates I have with myself, love letters, weird lists of all kinds, baby names, books I want to read,  comments on books I’ve read, to do lists, home school ideas, gift ideas…on and on it goes.  Its fascinating really… to stumble upon a notebook in a drawer that has entries from ten years ago scattered in with a to do list from last year, and a few more random entries that are undated and obviously not chronological.  I have never been a very linear person.

The private lives of women have always been fascinating to me, I think that is why I like reading your blogs!  My daily private life is so varried, I am never really bored.  And it is no different for you.  It’s the little details that make the essence of a woman’s life so interesting, this private world of thoughtfulness.  It’s an intuitive world, full wisdom and attention.  A woman’s world is also full of an energy, and I can feel this energy the moment I step into a woman’s space… whether it be her personal space, her home, her car, and yes, even her blog.  Have you ever wondered what was in another woman’s purse or pantry?  Have you scanned a grocery cart to wonder what she will cook tonight, or if she drinks coffee or not… what does she feed her family?  Have you ever secretly wished you could peruse a friend’s closet or makeup drawer?  What kind of perfume does she wear, what kind of cookware does she use?  What detergent?  What shampoo?  What diapers?  All of this speaks of essence..I really like getting to know women.

If only we trusted each other that much…

In a world that is so desperately broken I have noticed a growing atmosphere of suspicion and mistrust among women.  And let’s face it, women can be very hard on each other, even cruel.  But, I ask… at what cost?  We are losing contact with the private, yet very essential knowing that only women are capable of.  I have been burned by judgmentalism and snobbery just like you, and I hide, just like you.  But, what I find myself doing more than anything is presenting a version of myself that is calculated and sculpted to ensure my safety.  Some of this is necessary, and I understand that.  But, don’t you long to be in a circle of friends, in relationships, that are real…not for the sake of sharing how dirty our houses REALLY are, or how we ALL fight with our husbands, or that we fed our kids beanie weenies three times last week…all that is fine and good.  But, that is not the only kind of knowing that we women are capable of.  We are capable of real communion, and when we fail at this I think the whole world suffers.

And those of us who share our world with one another…well, we take a risk, but I like the risk.  Some days I wonder if I am brave enough to write here in this space…not because you demand it or that I have some mandate from God.  I write here because I want to, that’s a simple enough answer.  But, am I brave enough?  And here is the shocker.  I am not scared to show you how much laundry I have piled up in my laundry room.  I’ll take a picture right now of the inside of my car or my weedy flowerbeds and post it for the world to see.  Guess what, I don’t have one pumpkin in my house yet, and I have not brushed my teeth today…how’s that for honesty?  No the shocker is this, I am afraid to show you how great I am, how wonderful of a friend I am, how warm I can be, and how I shine.  That’s what I am afraid of, and rightly so…we’ve all been burned.

I admire those who take that risk, the risk of being burned and greatly misunderstood.  That to me is what makes a great writer, a great woman, a wonderful friend.  I want to be that kind of woman, that kind of friend.  I dream of a world that is made better, more beautiful, because I am here.  I understand my greatness is not generated by my abilities or accomplishments, but by a daily gift of grace.  My heart is warmed by the beauty and grace I see in others…I am not envious or covetous or jealous…and if I am I repent and try and struggle and pray.  I abhor gossip, and when I repeat it I feel badly because I understand what it means to uncover someone.  I want to be kind, kind enough to attract true friendship, kind enough to allow communion, kind enough to let you shine.

Here in this little corner of the internet, this place where I share a portion of my private world, this place where one heart chimes, well, I like this place.  My husband told me he liked my blog…I asked him why.  Do you know what he said?  He said, “I like seeing what is going on with you.”  Well, that is the same reason I like your blog, even if we have never met.  I like seeing you, in fact I like seeing all people.  Oh, for the eyes to really see.

I was struggling with a title for this post, and just as I was about to save it to draft and try again tomorrow I heard a movie come on in the living room.  I love Netflix!  My husband started the movie Safe Haven, a Nicolas Sparks. (Remember The Notebook?)  As I am watching the beginning of this chick flick I have decided to swipe the title for my post…we are all a little scared, some of us are terrified.  But, if we are brave and truly humble and radically kind…just maybe we are creating a wonderful safe haven for each other.  A wonderful private woman’s world of friendship, communion, and beauty.