Draw God

Later I would learn that Uccello painted the Battle of San Romano with tempera on wood panel in 1435, a scene recounting the victory of the Florentines over the Sienese.

But walking through the Louvre that day I didn’t know any of that. Frankly, the painting’s spirited clash of metal, charging horses, flapping banners appealed little to my pastoral, peace-loving sensibilities. But it was that boy sitting there….

If it hadn’t been for that cross-legged boy sitting on the floor of the gallery, a few feet from this masterpiece that purportedly once hung in Napoleon’s bathroom, I likely wouldn’t have given the work more than a passing glance.

But when I realized what this child attempted in the circling of tourists and foreign languages and the clicking of shutters, I lingered long, intrigued.

What I witnessed brushed me, dyed me, soaked into the fabric of me.

Actually, the young boy didn’t gaze on Uccello’s painting either. I never saw him look directly at it. Instead, this boy of perhaps ten turned slightly to peer at the canvas beside him. An artist had propped up an easel in front of Uccello’s Battle of San Romano, carefully dipped her brush into the palette atop a stool, and painstakingly copied every stroke of Uccello’s unto her canvas.

And this boy copied every stroke of hers.

By Ann Voscamp

Read the rest here.

Updates . . .

Diane is going to be a grandma. They sold their home in SoCal. Hubby needs a well-paying position to open up for him in Spokane.

Joycey just graduated her three boys from high school. She still has her twin girls in 8th grade and, of course, the boys aren't out on their own just yet.

Sue now has both girls married off and is getting reacquainted with the love of her life. Sue is also considering her involvement in jail ministry in SoCal. Beth would really like to have her as a partner.

Jennie is home again following a two-week trip abroad where she was privileged to speak at a women's conference. If you want to enjoy some excellent teaching, you can download the audio here:

http://www.emmanuelbaptist.co.uk/downloads/index.html

Look for: FCT B:Beautiful events, with Jennie Altstadt (April 2008). Don't wait too long to download; they may be taken down soon.

Steffer is nearing the end of a home remodel (!) while looking at having a senior in high school next year, a new junior higher, one in elementary, and possibly one in kindergarten (I'm not certain of little one's age). I think she definitely needs a vacation.

Me? I'm going to the beach and catching up on my own coursework. Feel free to join me.

School's Out (yea!)

And the kids think they're the happier ones. Not on your life. Nope, I am. We've been out since about the middle of April. Now we're looking at the start of 2008-09 in about 11 days. I must say, I'm not ready to jump in just yet. I'd rather sit by the beach, listen to the surf, read my book, let the wind blow through my hair, and veg . . . Now that sounds about right.

CJ has finished his baseball season. He did very well; the team had a successful year. He was able to play every position he wanted to at least once, I think. He already is planning out next year's season. The boy lives for baseball. My kind of guy.

Andrew and I just finished the indoor soccer season. I asked Andrew if he'd mind if I volunteered to coach his team this year -- he was all for it. (I figured, why not? I would be there anyway.) We had an almost perfect season. 0-7-1 and we lost our only game in the post-season tournament. There were 9 junior highers on the team, 8 boys, 1 girl. I had a great time with them. I learned winning is great but letting the kids get in the game and play was more important. I really like to win, mind you. But as a parent, I really like to see my kid play, and I think most parents think like that. So, that's how I managed playing time. We did our best, every player's skills improved but each athlete played an almost equal amount of time. I thought that was the right thing to do and that seemed to coincide with the philosophy of the YMCA league we were in.

So now, our Saturdays are once again ours. Whew.

Found in my email...

"I'd like to be the ideal mother, but I'm too busy raising my kids."

...Priceless.