June 29, 2022 - Reading time: ~1 minute
When she saw that she waited in vain,
that her hope was lost,
she took another of her cubs
and made him a young lion.
—Book of Ezekiel 19:5
(I read this verse out of context and it arrested me completely. I've never read it before. There's a kind of poetry here, in this out of context snippet, that suggests a fascinating story.)
Mountain Song
October 17, 2021 - Reading time: 2 minutes
Qomolangma (Mount Everest).
I took this photo in September 2019, on the Tibetan side of the Himalayas. The tour guide told us that what we were seeing is rare: a full view of the mountain from foot to peak, without any cloud covering. God's blessing to us.
Some time ago, I received a vision from the Holy Spirit while worshipping in church. I was standing on a mountain peak taller than Qomolangma, above the cloud cover, looking at range upon range of mountains stretching in all directions. There was nothing but earth beneath me, and sky above me, and the presence of the Lord all around me. I looked at the mountains, and it seemed that I beheld them in their primordial, pre-Fall state: pristine mountains before man's foot tread on them, mountains that only beheld the face of God. I saw these pristine mountains between cloud and sky, and something in my heart ached with terrible longing.
"Lord, this is beautiful, so beautiful," I said.
The Holy Spirit said, "Behold."
And, from horizon to horizon, the mountains began to sing.
In church, I remember falling facedown on the ground, my body and soul reverberating with this titanic song. It was an undescribable experience, like beholding a vast beauty that exceeds human dimensions and comprehension. The song and the vision lasted only a short time, but even now I can hear/feel/sense the echo of it, and my soul aches again.
O God, when you restore creation, I want to come back to this place, and hear the mountains singing their ancient praises to you.
Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
Who determined its measurements -- surely you know!
Or who has stretched the line upon it?
On what were its bases sunk,
or who laid its cornerstone,
when the morning stars sang together
and all the sons of God shouted for joy?—Book of Job, ch. 38, v. 4-7
Here is an incomplete visual description of things that have no shape.
February 8, 2021 - Reading time: ~1 minute
One. Death is a bottomless pool of clear water.
Two. Wind is a question mark.
Three. Morality is a thermos.
Four. Love is an over-full shopping bag with a broken handle.
Five. Fear is a cinderblock tower with a single door and no windows.
—Episode 148 "The Broadcaster",
Welcome to Night Vale
Mab
January 11, 2021 - Reading time: ~1 minute
In the darkness defined by her light i see the silhouette of another woman.
Her skin as black as the darkness between stars.
The recent moon is her hairpiece.
She is distant, inscrutable, and cold.
Now dormant.
But only for a time.
Is this how seasons work?
The bright woman looks at me.
Primer Book of the Alphabet
July 2, 2020 - Reading time: ~1 minute
A is for Azimuth,
B is for Boreas,
C is for Cosign,
D is for Diamat,
E is for Ellips,
F is for Flogiston,
G is for Gamut.
H is for Homeboy,
I is for Iikon,
J is for Jura,
K is for Kollaps,
L is for Laudanum,
M is for Myriad,
N is for Nadir,
O is for Oreole,
P is for Perihelion.
Q is for Quasar,
R is for Rhododendron,
S is for Sinus,
T is for Tricoleur,
U is for Ultra,
V is for Vector,
W is for Warheit,
X is for Xylophone,
Y is for Ystävä,
Z is for Zenith.
Four kinds of landscape:
August 28, 2019 - Reading time: ~1 minute
landscapes in which one may travel,
landscapes which can be contemplated,
landscapes in which one may ramble,
landscapes in which one may dwell.
—attributed to Guo Xi (c. 1020-c.1090)