Oh Elsie Dinsmore… I think we also got that same catalogue. I remember wanting that pilgrim dress as a little girl and being convinced it would make Thanksgiving better. Even as a kid I wanted things to be tidy, though I had the sneaking suspicion that there was something not quite right about Elsie (shall I count the ways?). The contrast between the moralism I was taught and our family falling apart was a lot, and I know that story is not unique.
The conversation reminds me of that Chesterton quote about fairy tales, “Fairy tales do not tell children that dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed.”
But maybe there’s always the good and the bad, because for all the moralism I read, there were so many other good books, and those things and the Sunday school lessons and all of it did eventually give me a sense of what truth was. My hope is to spare my children some of the confusion of pretending that to be a Christian is to live a tidy, pious life, but time will tell. To be a Christian is to live in the greatest story, but good stories are messy. They’re not safe, but they’re good.
I think so many parents who fall prey to the traps of the tidy and pious are well intentioned, scared to screw up, and trying to right some wrongs from their own childhood...aren't we all?! It has been good to talk with our adult kids about parenting from this perspective. Take the good/leave the bad, but we are all people who will probably replace one "bad" with another...perpetuating the cycle of kids who want to do better than their parents! Ah. Nothing new, except the mercies of the great story teller.
Yes, I’m sure I will have made so many mistakes too. I hope they’re different at least. And for all the family things that didn’t go well, there’s so much of my homeschool legacy that I’m keeping. That’s been it’s own battle — to admit that even though some things really hurt me there was a lot that was good and that I’m glad for and would repeat (especially in the area of school).
I was in a grand, encouraging online convo yesterday with other Christian readers, discussing 'good books.' The one I chose to read from is not "Christian" - "The Elegance of the Hedgehog" by Muriel Burbery--but oh, the themes--God-laced throughout. Self-sacrifice, honesty, beauty, courage.
I've broadened my criteria in fiction a good deal the last several years and I'm with you--all good stories lead to God.
“It took maturity to learn to separate the essence of a thing from its easy label.” 👏🏻 Man, we need that maturity in so much of life. This is a word of wisdom for life in 2024.
I just have to say... I'm 36 and as a kid was in a church/friend community that was big on Elsie Dinsmore. Saccharine is exactly the right word to describe those stories. My lasting impression of those books is simply the overwrought exclamation, "Oh, Papa!" :) I love your thoughts on this topic!
"Oh, Papa!" brings back more memories...I had forgotten that one! My kids are all a little salty (for Jesus) and I'm thankful for that. Saccharine makes me nervous.
Oh Elsie Dinsmore… I think we also got that same catalogue. I remember wanting that pilgrim dress as a little girl and being convinced it would make Thanksgiving better. Even as a kid I wanted things to be tidy, though I had the sneaking suspicion that there was something not quite right about Elsie (shall I count the ways?). The contrast between the moralism I was taught and our family falling apart was a lot, and I know that story is not unique.
The conversation reminds me of that Chesterton quote about fairy tales, “Fairy tales do not tell children that dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed.”
But maybe there’s always the good and the bad, because for all the moralism I read, there were so many other good books, and those things and the Sunday school lessons and all of it did eventually give me a sense of what truth was. My hope is to spare my children some of the confusion of pretending that to be a Christian is to live a tidy, pious life, but time will tell. To be a Christian is to live in the greatest story, but good stories are messy. They’re not safe, but they’re good.
I think so many parents who fall prey to the traps of the tidy and pious are well intentioned, scared to screw up, and trying to right some wrongs from their own childhood...aren't we all?! It has been good to talk with our adult kids about parenting from this perspective. Take the good/leave the bad, but we are all people who will probably replace one "bad" with another...perpetuating the cycle of kids who want to do better than their parents! Ah. Nothing new, except the mercies of the great story teller.
Yes, I’m sure I will have made so many mistakes too. I hope they’re different at least. And for all the family things that didn’t go well, there’s so much of my homeschool legacy that I’m keeping. That’s been it’s own battle — to admit that even though some things really hurt me there was a lot that was good and that I’m glad for and would repeat (especially in the area of school).
I was in a grand, encouraging online convo yesterday with other Christian readers, discussing 'good books.' The one I chose to read from is not "Christian" - "The Elegance of the Hedgehog" by Muriel Burbery--but oh, the themes--God-laced throughout. Self-sacrifice, honesty, beauty, courage.
I've broadened my criteria in fiction a good deal the last several years and I'm with you--all good stories lead to God.
Let's teach that :-)
“It took maturity to learn to separate the essence of a thing from its easy label.” 👏🏻 Man, we need that maturity in so much of life. This is a word of wisdom for life in 2024.
Yes indeed. Labels make it too easy to do harm.
storylines--rivers
who seek the sea, stand their ground
in fluidity
"stand their ground in fluidity"—gimme that.
I just have to say... I'm 36 and as a kid was in a church/friend community that was big on Elsie Dinsmore. Saccharine is exactly the right word to describe those stories. My lasting impression of those books is simply the overwrought exclamation, "Oh, Papa!" :) I love your thoughts on this topic!
"Oh, Papa!" brings back more memories...I had forgotten that one! My kids are all a little salty (for Jesus) and I'm thankful for that. Saccharine makes me nervous.