Thursday 18 April 2019

Teatime Reading

 Spring and teatime

One of the delights of Spring sunshine is the opportunity for taking tea in the garden on the patio.

Armed with some sewing and a good book or magazine nothing could be more relaxing and calming.

I am enjoying reading a, new to me, journal called Elementum which Rob Cohen describes on the cover as "as much a doorway as a publication". It is a collection of writings on nature, landscape and people but more than that it has beautiful photographs, paintings and crafts too. 

In the photograph above you can see the page showing a medieval book of hours illustration for 'none' which is appropriate as that is 3pm - teatime! Here is a snippet of Psalm 126 used at afternoon (none) prayer:

 It is vain for you to rise before the dawn
  and go late to your rest,
  eating the bread of toil –
  to those he loves, the Lord gives sleep.


I am embroidering "Chatelaine" by Inspirations which is another beautifully produced magazine that I adore reading. There are so many stunning projects in the magazine many of which I have thoroughly enjoyed sewing.

In the vein of Christian reading I am about to start book three of Elizabeth Goudge's The Eliot Family Trilogy. The books are:

The Bird in the Tree

Pilgrim's Inn

The Heart of the Family

These are the editions published by Hendrickson and I love them for the quality of production and the beautiful cover photography. They are printed in America.

The last one was written over a decade after the first and it will be interesting to see if there is any change in her writing by then.

We follow the family life of the Eliot's after the World Wars as they "struggle to make sense of life in the peaceful and spiritually-renewing surroundings of Damerosehay" the house at the centre of the stories.

Elizabeth Goudge's writing has a great sense of personal sacrifice for the greater  good of family and very much reflects her own life. She writes beautifully about landscape, inner thoughts and wisdom. I am looking forward to this last book in the trilogy and to lovely afternoons in the garden sewing and reading.

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