Saturday, September 08, 2007
In Memoriam
I met her first when I was eleven.
My memory of A Wrinkle in Time is linked always with the theme of Rimsky-Korsikov's "Young Prince and Princess," which I was playing at the time. I practiced the piece, then laid on my stomach across the wooden piano bench and read that wonderful story.
A Wind in the Door and A Swiftly Tilting Planet (my personal favorite of the Time trilogy) were the next reads, but by the time I was in middle school, I was in love with the Austin family and all of their quirks. I read A Ring of Endless Light in 8th grade, and I wandered around in a daze all that day and the next. How could she put so much tangible joy into the printed word?
I reread all of those, savoring them many times... and then, last summer, while coming home from Nicaragua, I read Walking On Water, and my world shifted. Faith and art weren't mutually exclusive! I didn't have to like all the bad "CCM" music just because it mentioned the Lord! I could go ahead and create and let the chips fall, and it was ok! And this wonderful artist had written it all in such lovely, lilting prose! My writing style was affected for months.
Madeleine L'Engle. Heaven gains.
My memory of A Wrinkle in Time is linked always with the theme of Rimsky-Korsikov's "Young Prince and Princess," which I was playing at the time. I practiced the piece, then laid on my stomach across the wooden piano bench and read that wonderful story.
A Wind in the Door and A Swiftly Tilting Planet (my personal favorite of the Time trilogy) were the next reads, but by the time I was in middle school, I was in love with the Austin family and all of their quirks. I read A Ring of Endless Light in 8th grade, and I wandered around in a daze all that day and the next. How could she put so much tangible joy into the printed word?
I reread all of those, savoring them many times... and then, last summer, while coming home from Nicaragua, I read Walking On Water, and my world shifted. Faith and art weren't mutually exclusive! I didn't have to like all the bad "CCM" music just because it mentioned the Lord! I could go ahead and create and let the chips fall, and it was ok! And this wonderful artist had written it all in such lovely, lilting prose! My writing style was affected for months.
Madeleine L'Engle. Heaven gains.
