"It was homemaking that mattered. Every home was a brick in the great wall of decent living that men erected over and over again as a bulwark against the perpetual flooding in of evil. But women made the bricks, and the durableness of each civilization depended upon their quality, and it was no good weakening oneself for the brick-making by thinking too much about the flood."
Reading "Pilgrim's Inn" by Elizabeth Goudge seems like the perfect antidote for these days in which we live. As I was reading last night, Grandmother Lucilla was sitting in her chair surrounded by her daughter and son, Margaret and Hilary, as well as her daughter-in-law, Nadine. She was quietly listening into their conversation as her mind was wandering to thoughts of a dear one who has passed on and trying to pay attention to what they were saying. But she realized that they were speaking "about the deplorable state of the world, about that terrible bomb, about famine and inflation and chaos and death and her mind shied away from their talk like a terrified horse." Instead, she sought to pray and enjoy the things that were left...things of beauty and goodness. And then she cried out that THIS is what matters and she spoke the words that I quoted above.
Truly, those words seem appropriate for these days. Days in which tension is high and chaos is rampant. And in those days, I think we need to be reminded over and over again, that THIS is what matters...home and family and love and cherishing a gentler, softer, slower way of life. That THIS within our home…quietness and peace and gathering together and feasting with those with whom we share our sacred space. That THIS beauty right smack in front of our faces...is what truly counts and matters.
Despite all the noise and chaos out there and all the anxiety and overwhelming heaviness we all feel, I think that there is still good out there and so much of it, perhaps most of it, exists in THIS, just as Grandmother Lucilla said.
I am finding this Goudge novel (my first one!) a comfort to my weary soul and a hearty dose of beauty in these heavy days. I'd highly recommend visiting the @elizabethgoudgebookclub page on Instagram if you're over there for lots of Goudge goodness!