It's not often that I can remember what I was doing exactly five years ago, but this evening I can. It was five years ago today that Madeleine L'Engle passed away, moving from this earth to glory.
She meant so much to me as a person and a writer than her loss felt huge. I spent most of this evening, five years ago, crying and re-reading favorite portions of her books ~ which still take up a proportionately large section of my shelves.
I find it interesting that this day slipped up on me almost unawares, and yet I have had Madeleine on my mind and heart almost all week, as I'm working on the outline of a book that would potentially explore her work and the work of several other authors.
Instead of trying to say anything moving and profound tonight (when I am, quite honestly, very stressed and tired) I thought I would post a few things from my archives. I have shared about Madeleine a good bit over the years.
Here's a post I wrote in honor of A Wrinkle in Time's 50th anniversary several months ago. It's in the form of a letter to Madeleine.
And this was the initial reflection I posted the day after she died, which I entitled, "For Madeleine, May All Her Seasons Be Blessed." As I wrote there:
Her writing has shaped me and helped me in so many ways. She helped me
think about life in terms of seasons; she helped me learn to order my
time and count it as precious. She taught me the importance of names and
naming, and what a precious gift it is to be given the gift of
someone's name. She taught me to hope and believe that marriage, even or
especially in its difficult times, could still grow and flourish. She
reminded me to be honest in my prayers. Time and again, she returned my
focus to God's amazing love for his beloved creation, and especially
turned my eyes again and again to the incarnation and the wonderful gift
of Jesus.
So thankful for her life. I still miss her.
No comments:
Post a Comment