Things of Beauty #46

Rats, bird necks, & our inconvenient complexity

I had a catch-up on all those articles I saved to read sort of weekend, so this week’s list reflects that. There’s also a virtual art show and a fascinating micro-mini documentary about birds.

Enjoy! And let me know what you’ve been reading, watching, listening to in the comments!

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Here’s what I’ve squirreled away, lately:

🐿 Humans are Inconveniently Complex by

Nadia Bolz-Weber

, about the ways we are so very different and so very much the same, and how powerful connecting around both of those things is.

All I know for sure is that this world will break your heart. There’s enough sorrow to go around and for everyone to have seconds.

But this world has a thousand forms of medicine too.

🐿 I love Mari Andrew’s newsletter

Out of the Blue

and was excited to hear about her art show in New York. Even more exciting, she shared a virtual version of it with us all. Obviously, I’m a huge fan of meditating on daily, unremarkable, joyful things so I’m a big fan.

SACRED CITY: Meditations on Daily Life in NYC

My inspiration came in the form of a podcast (what else) about the purpose of the Sabbath, the sacred day of rest. Rather than tune the world out, so the hosts explained, Sabbath is about tuning in. And by becoming more present, even to chaotic surroundings, we find rest and inner peace.

I began wondering how New York would feel if I treated quotidian moments like mini-Sabbaths, fully engaged so that I could claim that rest for myself no matter my surroundings.

OUR BLESSED BRETHREN: Rats, by Mari Andrew from Sacred City: Meditations on Daily Life in NYC