It's always hard to explain what Lit Camp is. Two summers ago, I went to Lit Camp for the first time. Last weekend, I went again, and I enjoyed it just as much. "Lit Camp" is short for "Literature Camp" and it's an educational/social weekend for people would love literature, planned with a Christian worldview in mind. Anyone is welcome, but most of the attendees have Anabaptist connections and the average age is maybe thirty. It's not a "pack your tent" type of event. Here's where it's … [Read more...] about Lit Camp Again!
Friends
Mennonites Walk Into a Cathedral
Witnessing a Roman Catholic ordination was not something I had planned to ever do. Until just recently, I didn't even know the Catholics had ordinations. But on a beautiful Saturday morning in mid-May, the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Philadelphia filled with a thousand or more well-dressed worshippers (standing-room-only) celebrating the ordination of nine young priests, and I was there too, loving the music and trying not to accidentally cross myself. A few weeks ago, I … [Read more...] about Mennonites Walk Into a Cathedral
Spying Out Washington, D.C.
"Oh, Susan. You've never been to the Spy Museum? You should go," someone told me recently. Later, I related the conversation to my friend Martina, and she said, "I've never been there either! Let's go, I'll drive!" So last Saturday was the chosen day for Martina and I to visit the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C. I get to Washington D.C. about every three years or so, and there's always so much to see, especially for people like Martina and I, interested in news and … [Read more...] about Spying Out Washington, D.C.
Literature Camp: Writing, Reading, and the Castle Oil Built
Why literature? Why poetry? Why a literature camp in a castle? For years, friends raved about the annual "Lit Camp", and last weekend I attended for the first time. We left at 11:30 a.m. on Friday. I drove, and with me were two sisters from New Holland, Dorcas and Annetta. None of us had ever been to Lit Camp before. The trip to western Pennsylvania took five hours. I hope this is worth it, I thought. The details were sketchy: a mansion in Franklin, PA, lots of great bookish … [Read more...] about Literature Camp: Writing, Reading, and the Castle Oil Built
Summer/Fall Collage
Happy Autumn! Here's a collage of summer and fall highlights— my friend Arlene's wedding, a poetry reading in an off-the-grid farmhouse, and making balloon animals at the New Holland Fair. Bridesmaid Duty VI On July 29, a dear long-time friend, Arlene, got married! Her husband, Erny, celebrated the occasion by blowing the shofar horn he bought in Israel, the same horn he blew at a New Year Eve's party, at the start of 2020. I don't think he and Arlene had even met back then. Arlene … [Read more...] about Summer/Fall Collage