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Blessing the Dust
Jan Richardson
All those days you felt like dust, like dirt, as if all you had to do was turn your face toward the wind and be scattered to the four corners
or swept away by the smallest breath as insubstantial –
did you not know what the Holy One can do with dust?
This is the day we freely say we are scorched.
This is the hour we are marked by what has made it through the burning.
This is the moment we ask for the blessing that lives within the ancient ashes, that makes its home inside the soil of this sacred earth.
So let us be marked not for sorrow. And let us be marked not for shame. Let us be marked not for false humility or for thinking we are less than we are
but for claiming what God can do within the dust, within the dirt, within the stuff of which the world is made and the stars that blaze in our bones and the galaxies that spiral inside the smudge we bear.
Yesterday I was researching a trip to St. Louis coming up in March. I like to look for Disciples of Christ churches in places I will visit. I located a church near where I’ll be staying and in reading about it, I learned about a Korean Disciples of Christ congregation near my hometown whose church on Campbell Ave. was vandalized in 2021. The congregation now shares a building with an English-speaking congregation in a town farther north, but still in the general metro area. The congregation recieved a grant from an organzation housed in the St. Louis church to hold Korean language classes for the English-speaking congregation.
Today at my church we sang When You Do This, Remember Me. The lyrics are by Alexander Campbell, a leader in the Restoration Movement (Stone-Campbell Movement) and founder of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). They were adapted into a hymn in 1988. I noticed the arrangment was dated 1993.
You my friend, a stranger once, do now belong to heaven. Once far away, you are brought home into God’s family. Now my lord is also your’s, your people are my own; embraced together in God’s arms, I enfold you now in mine. All your sorrows shall be mine; your joy shall be my joy; indebted to God’s love in Christ, we die and reign with him.
Today’s sermon was about Jacob, the ladder guy in the Old Testament. The minister said 30 years passed between the time of Jacob’s dream and when he built an alter at the place where God spoke to him. Jacob called the place Bethel which means “house of God”.
The Korean congreation is called Bethel and they have been meeting since 1993. This year they will celebrate 30 years.
"February is the border between winter and spring." ~Terri Guillemets.
Snowdrop (Galanthus Nivalis) by Mary Delany (1700-1788).
Collage of coloured papers, with bodycolour and watercolour, on black ink background (1777).
© The Trustees of the British Museum.
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) license.

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source
the backyard birds sounded like spring today
The Sorrow of Memory (Nostalgia), c.1891 - Maria Yakunchikova
~ books read in 2022 ~
#4: The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh
The myths of my people say only a true bride of the Sea God can bring an end to his insatiable wrath.
Interview with Axie Oh
We’re excited to feature an interview with Axie Oh today. It’s release day for her latest novel, XOXO.
Cello prodigy Jenny has one goal: to get into a prestigious music conservatory. When she meets mysterious, handsome Jaewoo in her uncle’s Los Angeles karaoke bar, it’s clear he’s the kind of boy who would uproot her careful plans. But in a moment of spontaneity, she allows him to pull her out of her comfort zone for one unforgettable night of adventure…before he disappears without a word.
Three months later, when Jenny and her mother arrive in South Korea to take care of her ailing grandmother, she’s shocked to discover that Jaewoo is a student at the same elite arts academy where she’s enrolled for the semester. And he’s not just any student. He’s a member of one of the biggest K-pop bands in the world—and he’s strictly forbidden from dating.
When a relationship means throwing Jenny’s life off the path she’s spent years mapping out, she’ll have to decide once and for all just how much she’s willing to risk for love.
*There will be several online events to help celebrate release week and you can find out more about those here.
Congratulations and happy release day. Thanks so much for taking the time to share a little bit about your writing. I just re-read XOXO and it was even more fun the second time through. I had so many smiles and plenty of laughter. I also had to find and listen to a few songs along the way as music is such a big part of the story.
Axie: Ah, I love that!
Jenny is clearly a music lover–though K-pop isn’t exactly at the top of her playlists. Has music and/or K-pop always been important in your life?
Axie: It has! My mother, who immigrated to the US when she was in high school, listened to Korean music—though I’m not sure if that would be considered K-pop at the time, and so did my older brother. In elementary school, I was into 1st generation K-pop groups like Fin.K.L and Shinhwa, then in middle school I was obsessed with Super Junior, and finally in high school and college, my favorite groups were Big Bang and Exo, among so many others. BTS debuted in 2013 right after I graduated from college, and I was a fan of theirs from the beginning!
Is there a K-pop song you’re loving right now or a K-pop group you think people should listen to immediately?
Axie: Right now I’m really into TXT and ENHYPEN’s music. If you like BTS, you should give them a listen! See the below question for what songs I think you should listen to immediately!
I’ve seen playlists for Rebel Seoul and Rogue Heart. Do you make one for all of your novels?
Axie: I do! I make playlists after each book I write as something fun for myself and they also provide some nice extra content for readers. I recently shared my playlist for XOXO, which I spent months on—it’s a K-pop book so I really wanted to showcase a variety of artists, and curate it well with songs that fit the book’s mood and tone. I even attempted to match each song to a chapter, so there are 40 songs on the playlist! You can check out the Spotify playlist here.
Do you feel like you are finished with the characters in XOXO or is there a possible follow-up?
Axie: I wrote XOXO as a standalone, but if my publisher came knocking, I wouldn’t say no!
What did you like about going from writing sci-fi books to writing a contemporary romance?
Axie: I liked exploring a completely new genre with so many fun, familiar tropes. And XOXO in particular is a very light-hearted and happy book, much different than my moody, atmospheric sci-fi series. Though there *is* worldbuilding involved in writing a contemporary, it’s not as intense as a sci-fi novel, so that was also nice for me!
And I see your next publication The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a fantasy re-telling. Are there things about writing a fantasy that you’ve appreciated?
Axie: Fantasy as a genre is actually my first love, and retellings my favorite subgenre of fantasy. I love how in fantasy you can explore new worlds, and there are no limits to one’s imagination.
No matter the genre, what do you love about writing and what can be a challenge?
Axie: As a generally private person, I love how through writing I can share parts of myself with others. I feel like I express myself best through fiction. I also definitely don’t feel like I create in a vacuum, but in conversation with others. What I mean by this is that I’m inspired by other forms of media when creating my own stories. For example, XOXO is inspired by my love of K-dramas, the Rebel Seoul series is a love letter to mecha anime, and The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is my addition to the YA retelling subgenre of books, like those written by Robin McKinley and Diana Wynne Jones.
As for challenges, there are so many—difficult revisions, bad writing days, comparing myself to other writers—but at the end of the day, the need to express myself through writing is most important to me than all the rest combined.
What are your most anticipated reads that haven’t been published yet?
Axie: I blurbed a few books that I’m very excited about! Nafiza Azad’s sophomore novel THE WILD ONES releases next month and it’s absolutely stunning. If you liked XOXO, and were curious what it’s like to be a non-Korean idol in the K-pop world—in this case, Chinese American—then check out Alexandra Leigh Young’s IDOL GOSSIP, out in September. And lastly, Julie Abe’s YA contemporary debut, THE CHARMED LIST, is as charming as it sounds, about two childhood best friends to enemies to lovers who go on a road trip together—they also happen to wield magic! This one isn’t out until Summer 2022.
We’re looking forward to seeing XOXO out in the world soon and having a group discussion here on the blog about it too! Thanks again.
Axie: Thank you for having me!! This interview was so much fun ☺
Axie Oh is a first generation Korean American, born in NYC and raised in New Jersey. She studied Korean history and creative writing as an undergrad at the University of California – San Diego and holds an MFA from Lesley University in Writing for Young People. Her passions include K-pop, anime, stationery supplies, and milk tea. She currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada with her puppy, Toro.
You can find her on her website and on Goodreads, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, and Instagram.
I have a goal to read 12 books this year. Doesn't seem like an unachievable goal, but I am good at starting books. I don't always finish them.
I was up 24 hours yesterday and much of the time I could have been sleeping, I was reading this book. It was so good.
The beautiful cover illustration caught my eye at the library. I think I am the first person to check it out. I may buy a copy because it was wonderful.

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venting
I haven’t posted anything in such a long time, but I have to vent.
There’s an event tomorrow at work that I am responsible for planning. I have been stressing out all week because I know I could have done a better job, but I also know I don’t care all that much, other than I need a job and don’t really want to get fired. I also think I may have undiagnosed ADD, which while that explains a lot about how I function, it’s not an excuse for not being more on top of things, except that it is because I don’t know any coping mechanisms to operate with ADD.
I was off work yesterday for Veterans Day, so that was a nice break, but it didn’t help with the event coming up. Kiddo has a cold, texted me that she wanted to come home. She was caught crying in the hallway by the principal, who sent her to the nurse, who then sent her home. Yeah, so that means we had to either get to the doctor for note or have a COVID test to come back to school. *sigh*
I texted last night that I had to take Kiddo for a test in the morning, but would be at work in the afternoon. I had trouble getting through to the attendance line and while struggling with that, realized I was supposed to promote the event on a local radio station. So then I freaked out and tried to contact the station to let them know I wasn’t going to make it in this morning.
I finally made it to work by 2:00 pm and find out the damn newspaper printed incorrect information about the event, mainly the wrong location. I sent them a press release with all the correct information but apparently they are all idiots and only looked at the flyer, and assumed the wrong information. The funny thing is the phones don’t work at the wrong location, so know one can call them with questions and the rest of us won’t be in the office tomorrow to answer our phones. So, I scramble to update the flyer and posted it to our website and social media, but the damage is done and it wasn’t my fault.
Next I go to Walmart to get food for the volunteers and staff working tomorrow. By the way, my boss won’t be working because she scheduled an appointment she can’t get out of without a penalty fee, but wouldn’t you think she’d know we were having an event??(Just to be bitter, I had to reschedule an appointment this week because my coworkers never think of me when it comes to lunches and I wasn’t going to be able to make it.)
But, I digress. I got soaked in a rain storm coming out of Walmart because I was in there so long. I thought I could make it out before the rain and decided to know wear my rain coat. But I had to wait on a mom with three kids, who unfortunately wasn’t able to pay for her groceries, and an old lady who wrote a check. I couldn’t go through the u-scan because I had a tax exempt card.
By the time I got back to work, everyone was gone and the gate was locked. I let myself in and unloaded the food. I prepped the lunch and left before it was very dark. On the way home I almost hit two guys on bikes who had no lights or reflectors. One was riding the wrong way in traffic!
Dinner was local sweet red wine and double chocolate Haagen-Dazs ice cream.
I’m not happy that I have to work this Saturday and next. It might be better if I got paid for the extra time, but I just get comp time. I’m also bitter that I will once again miss participating in the holiday parade and lighting with my family and church because I have to do another parade for work on a third Saturday. I’m bitter, angry, and ready to quit.
But, on top of that, is the discovery that I may have undiagnosed ADD. I have felt that I have an unfair amount of responsibilities and I struggle with doing all of them. To learn it might be how my brain functions, and not me being a failure, is hopeful, but I still want to quit. All of the tasks feel like meaningless busy work.
Can’t believe it’s September already.
September calendar pages for early 1900′s by Theodorus van Hoytema (Dutch, 1863–1917).
Images and text information courtesy MFA Boston.
Sun on a House, Dieppe, James Proudfoot
Solstice thoughts
We've been observing Jupiter and Saturn move toward the Great Conjunction. Thankfully, the sky cleared up this afternoon and stated clear long enough after sunset that we could see the planets just by stepping out the back door. We tried using the little telescope, but we couldn't get it to focus. There's a better one in the garage that will be revealed on Christmas morning.
The Solstice is the return of the light, defeating the darkness. It's a time if change and hope. I feel hopeful about the new year and the new administration. There's lots of work to fix the mess, find hundreds of parents, right wrongs, and heal. I've been praying for Peace. I will continue to pray, but I will also go out and feed the hungry, help the less fortunate, love my neighbors.
Today is the feast day of St. Thomas in some traditions. He doubted that Jesus was resurrected. He needed to see and touch his wounds as proof. Some are calling the Great Conjunction the Christmas Star. It's possible, but I know it's two planets because I can see them with my naked eye. I understand the science of it, and it is still a remarkable event to witness in my lifetime.
I am thankful for the scientists who developed the vaccines against COVID-19. We have a long fight yet, but we have a weapon. Is this not a miracle?
I was baptized three months ago. It was a promise to myself to follow the teachings of Jesus to love more. Not just at Christmas, but always. I am also praying that minds and hearts will be changed. Everyone needs to realize the lessons from the pandemic. Love one another. Take care of the young, the elderly, the poor, the widows, and tax the rich.

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Baptism Day
Today I did something I didn’t think I would do. At 45 years old, with my little family and my oldest friends in attendance, as well as people viewing via Facebook, I was baptised. My sister in Christ, Christina Lynn, and I are neither one for showing off or drawing attention to ourselves, so for this special day to be shared live via the internet, was a very 2020 thing.
We sat with our families until Pastor Evie called us down to the altar. The congregation sang Down to the River to Pray as we were led around the sanctuary. I took my daughter with me and we both cried. Christina took her mother.
I went first, after pretending to play Rock, Paper, Scissors with Christina. We were behind a partition, so no one in the sanctuary saw. I haven’t watched the video, but I slipped going in. Thankfully, I didn’t fall. I also inhaled water coming up, because it was colder than expected and took my breath away going under. The little white robes we wore were actually pant suits with coulottes.
We originally were to be baptized at Easter, but our church wasn’t gathering in person then. So many things have been cancelled and postponed this year. We haven’t been able to gather with friends and family. Our pastor wanted to have a celebration and we agreed that it was needed.
My husband smoked 20 pounds of pork and 10 pounds of chicken. We had lemonade and iced tea, coleslaw and potato salad, cupcakes and cookies. We rented a creekside shelter in one of the city parks and had a fire in the stone fireplace. It was a beautiful, sunny September day with a clear, blue sky. And I was so happy to spend it with good friends and family.
Just as the baptism represents the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, it symbolizes the death and burial of the old self of the repentant believer, and the joyous birth of a brand new being in Christ. Those who founded the Disciples movement taught baptism by immersion as the accepted form. – From Word to the Church on Baptism, Commission on Theology, 1987
Peter said to them,” Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” – Acts 2:38 (NRSV)
Ceiling mosaic of the Baptistry of Neon in Ravenna. It depicts the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River, with a personification of the river to the side of the scene. A procession of apostles proceeds around the mosaic in two directions, ending with Saint Peter meeting Saint Paul.