Anita Mathias: Dreaming Beneath the Spires
Anita Mathias's Blog on Faith and Art
I happily unpacked my new box of Jean Renoir Dvds.
Roy, suspiciously, “What have you bought now?”
Me, “When I was an undergraduate at Somerville, late one night, after studying, I went alone to the Phoenix at Walton Street, and saw Jean Renoir’s absolutely beautiful Partie de Campagne. 25 years later, I still remember it.”
Roy, “I can tell from the long preamble that you know I won’t like it.”
Now, why did I marry a perceptive husband?
I really want Irene to be a committed Christian like Zoe. Roy & Zoe keep predicting that Irene is going to surprise us all.
Me, “Irene, when you commit your life to Christ, you can be baptised.”
She, “Oh.”
Me, “Though you will need to tell the whole church about how you have now decided to to follow Christ.”
Irene, just realizing this, said very crossly “Mum, why couldn’t you just have baptised me when I was a baby?”
Overheard at our house. Irene, 11, to Zoe, 15. “I’m really worried.”
Zoe, sounding very concerned. “Why, what’s happened?”
Irene, “I never thought this day would come.”
Zoe, now anxious, “What’s happened, Irene?”
Irene, “Zoe, I am picking up all your habits. I am becoming YOU!”
Roy, watching me tear the shrink-wrap off a packet of crackers with my teeth is now threatening to have a video-blog for those who don’t like reading or writing.
He’s only to follow me through my day, recording my eccentricities, he threatens.
Roy and writing–cognitive dissonance.
However, he claims he wants to have a blog for those who don’t like reading or writing–a blog about what he reads, learns, and experiences, with lots of photos i.e. not too touchy-feely.
After we all commented on the dearness of ROY having a blog, I offered him “Blogging for Dummies.”
He refused, “My readers are not dummies.”
Then slunk back to pick it up.
I asked, “But you’ve decided you might be one?”
Silence!
I generally sort out logistical challenges, like how to provide lunch for 15 people in the context of prayer.
I was puzzling this out, while Irene kept coming up with every more time-intensive and impractical menu suggestions.
“Hush, Irene,” I said, “I am trying to discuss this problem with my Heavenly Father.”
I said. “Well,” she said, “Why don’t you just discuss it with your heavenly daughter?”
Our toddler Zoe occasionally heard us talk about money when we lived in America.
She would prick up her ears, and say, “Money? Money-dollars? You want money? Here take!” and give us a handful of imaginary dollar bills.
We’d laugh.
But there was a truth to it.
It would be just as easy for God to resolve our dilemmas beautifully and effortlessly
if we had faith…
if we asked….
if it were in our best interests….
for sometimes our character has to develop too.
But we do need to believe that he can, he will, if we are to retain as light-hearted an approach to money as two year old Zoe.
Zoe and I go to conversation classes at the Alliance Francaise once a week. We were asked to describe our favourite place in the world. Everyone else said places like Switzerland, New Zealand, Venice, Costa Rica.
Zoe said, “Mon Maison. I love my house. I love my new conservatory. I love my garden. I love my rabbits. I love my dog. I love the ponds. I love the walks in our paddock.”
The entire class was charmed, even our brilliant and intellectual teacher, who even forget to scold her for using simple, rather complex or compound sentences.