Changes in the Seasons and New Books

Fall has come to Montana.  The mountains have received their first good dousing of snow and now as the temperatures get colder the snow capping will remain until next summer.

I love Montana and the colder weather.  I've never done well in the heat and since learning about having MS - it's really no wonder. My body just doesn't regulate the temperature in my body properly, so warm weather, stuffy Walmarts, and hot, humid climates just don't agree with me.  I thank God for such a wonderful place to live.



The Brides of Seattle series is completed and all 3 books have been published and made available to the public.   This was such a fun series for me to write and I hate to let go of the characters. According to some of the emails I've received, there are a great many readers out there who are also having trouble letting go.  Who knows - maybe somewhere down the road we'll revisit those wonderful folks.


The Brides of Seattle series deals with the time period when almost all of Seattle's downtown was burned to the ground.  Here are some photos that I found from that time period prior to the fire  









Newspaper account of the fire

I think most amazing of all is that within a year, Seattle had remade itself.  There was still work to be done, but so much had been accomplished in a very short time.  Just goes to show what folks with that go-to spirit can accomplish.


I hope you get a chance to read the series, and if you do - drop me a note here and let me know what you enjoyed or didn't enjoy about the series.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Ode to Joy

Just got back from hearing the Bozeman Symphony perform Ode to Joy - Beethoven's 9th.  Amazing is the only word that comes to mind.

Bozeman definitely has its share of talented people and the orchestra that perform is no exception.  I've always been a great fan of Beethoven's 9th anyway and this was such a neat way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

What's even more remarkable is the fact that Beethoven wrote this when he was almost completely deaf.  When it was first performed in Vienna in 1824 Beethoven had to be turned around at the end to see the applause and joy he'd given the audience.  This is a photo of one page of the original manuscript.

I grew up singing Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee to the tune of Ode to Joy.  I've always loved the words Henry Van Dyke wrote in 1907 to be sung to Ode to Joy. It starts out:

Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee, God of glory, Lord of love
Hearts unfold like flowers before Thee, opening to the sun above.
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness; drive the dark of doubt away
Giver of immortal gladness, fill us with the light of day!

What a day of praise!  I feel completely re-energized for the week to come.

I'll leave you with this wonderful flash mob video.

Joshua Bell and my trip to Colorado

For those of you who have never heard the name Joshua Bell, I have to enlighten you.

 Joshua Bell is an amazing violinist and I had the great opportunity to hear him play in Ft. Collins, CO last week. I was not disappointed.  Mr. Bell is considered a "classical music superstar."  He was recently named the Music Director of the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields and has earned numerous awards and debuted when he was just 14.



 Here's a little example of his amazing artistry on the violin - which by the way is a 1713 Huberman Stradivarius.

 


I heard about Joshua Bell about 20 years ago and since then have wanted very much to see him in concert, but he was never in a place close enough for me to drop what I was doing and go.

This time he was and my friend and I were able to heard him play. Here we are dressed up for the occasion.  Okay - we were really just playing around in a thrift store.

 I wish everyone could attend one of his concerts as the man is pure poetry in motion.






Now I have to also give high praise for the pianist who accompanied Mr. Bell. Sam Haywood is a British pianist who has won many of his own accolades.

One of the most amazing things I read about him was that to celebrate Chopin's bicentennial year, he made the world premiere recording on Chopin's own Pleyel piano which is part of the Cobbe Collection at Hatchlands.





 It was amazing the way these two performed together and it brought tears to my eyes and all I could do was praise God was giving such talent. Thankfully I have a few CDs and continue to enjoy the music now that I'm back home. But, there was nothing quite so grand as hearing him play in person. Yes, that was a heavy sigh you just heard from a very contented heart.