one thousand gifts

the name of the new book i'm reading.

and can i just say, you need to put your laptop on the coffee table (or under the big leather armchair, if you're the smiths), grab your keys and head straight for the nearest bookstore to buy it.

or if you're K and amazon likes to send you things with free shipping, you can order it here.

do you ever read passages in books that articulate something you have felt so deep in your soul but would never have known how to put into words? that has been my experience with this book. take for instance this excerpt:

"I wonder if the rent in the canvas of our life backdrop, the losses that puncture our world, our own emptiness, might actually become places to see.

To see through to God.

That that which tears open our souls, those holes that splatter our sight, may actually become the thin, open places to see through the mess of this place to the heart-aching beauty beyond. To Him. To the God whom we endlessly crave."

and this one:

"When we lay the soil of our hard lives open to the rain of grace and let joy penetrate our cracked and dry places, let joy soak into our broken skin and deep crevices, life grows. How can this not be the best thing for the world? For us? The clouds open when we mouth thanks."

the thread woven throughout her story is a dare from a friend to come up with 1,000 things she loves ... in other words, 1,000 blessings in her life ... 1,000 gifts from the Father.

i've decided to take on the challenge myself, beginning with gratitude for

1. precious letters delivered to my inbox from the girls of vintage CAKE


"And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Eph. 5:20).

with much love,
c