While I love quotes and am moved by words, the sad truth is that many don’t stick with me for the long haul. Thankfully when I read The Pilgrim’s Regress
Be sure it is not for nothing that the Landlord has knit our hearts so closely to time and place – to one friend rather than another and one shire more that all the land.
Knit to one person more than another. One place more than another. Why did I love Chengdu so much when others mocked (and still mock) it? The cloudy skies, the lack of heat, are just a few things that made it hard for some to see the beauty she possesses. All I can say is I was knit to her. And yes, I fuss about Beijing air and the traffic, but again, the Landlord has seen fit to knit me here. I will always be a Coloradan no matter where I live. People chuckle and are a little unsure how to take my claim that the Broncos will be in heaven. How can they not be?! Likewise you have been knit to a place.
Why love Kentucky? I don’t know, but maybe you do. (I hope the answer isn’t “The Wildcats!”)
Have any interest in Budapest? The answers vary.
What’s great about Xi’an? I might only see the Warriors, but if you call Xi’an home, you know, deep in your bones the magic and mystery of Xi’an is more than mere stone men.
Recent events between the Chinese and Japanese have lead to stickers like these just to be clear where this car owner’s heart is knit. Do you see the red flag sticker?
And it not to the country who made the car!
This morning I finished 1776
So why go on and on about a book about a war fought over 200 years ago? Because as an American I am knit to America. In this political season it’s easy to see what’s annoying about the process (ads, in case you are the one person who loves them and has no idea what I’m talking about). But knit one, pearl two, here’s part of my heart.
The Landlord is knit to all the world and I am not. However, he has made us complex enough to be knit to several places at once. I used to feel bad about not caring more for South America {or truth be told, even knowing which countries are in South America}.
But here is where the body of Christ comes in. I am knit to China and America. You may be knit to Canada, Brazil, and America. Do you see the overlap? Slowly, piece by piece, a patchwork quilt is made, whereby The Body is covered. The stitching is not always even and some pieces are more worn than others.
Like any good patchwork quilt, each piece tells a story and reminds us of an outfit, an event, a person. It grafts the past into the present and provides an infinitely more interesting story than any one item.
So, I am knit to Beijing, Chengdu, Broxburn, Lawrence, and Denver. Oh what a story those pieces tell! Thank you God for the richness of life and for grafting me into more than one place.
Which shire(s) has Landlord knit you to?
Ahh! You wove your words together in such a way that spoke right to my heart. I love this post; thank you for writing!
And you for chiming in. Erika, think fondly of our bus ride to the acrobats and your help with the title to my book :) … you’re grafted into it!
You have written about something that I have always felt but did not know how to put in words. I like to think that bythe start of the landlord’s knit for me is Canada. No matter where I roam, it will always be where the knit started. He has so far knitted me to Canada especially Ontario, British Columbia, Cape Bretton as well as Manchay, Peru, Uganda, Beijing,Zhengzhou and now UB, Mongolia. I look foward to where the knit will go once it is time to move on.
LOVE it!
Beautiful!
The swatches have seemed disparate at times, disconnected, but indeed they are knit together. Have I esteemed the finished work? Have I stewarded well what’s emerged from the knitting together of the pieces? Rich thoughts to start my day. Thank you.
Oh Marilyn, was a lovely addition. Peace be with you.
Waco. Denver. Yinchuan. Really excellent post, Amy.
And just like that we have two overlapping pieces. I”m so glad :)
It’s TOTALLY all about the Wildcats!! :)
:) … I knew someone couldn’t walk past that. And it made my day that it was YOU!
I love this…as one who finds it difficult to name “home” right now, I am deeply knit to Kansas City, London & the UK in general, Chiang Mai, and Florida with more to add. I totally agree with the Kentucky thing… ;) BTW, I just read 1776 this summer and loved it also. I too, was surprised that it was focused on that year instead of the war! McCullough is a gifted story teller! As are you. :) Thanks for sharing yet again my friend!
I don’t know why it makes me happy that someone else thought the book was about more than just that year, but it tickles me :)
I’m knit to both Wayne County, PA (where I spent most of my adult life) and Johnstown, PA where I was born and raised. I am knit to Ohio because my sister and her family live there. There’s nothing like the stitches of good memories to connect you to a place! My father is the stitch that connects me to Estonia. He was born there. The stitch became more precious when I was able to visit Estonia with him and my mother in 2005. The most surprising stitch of all is that one that knit me to China. I’m still waiting to see how this particular part of the pattern will turn out.
Thanks for such a great word picture. You may not get into to poetry but something of it seems to have gotten into you. :)
By the way McCullough wrote a great book on the 1889 Johnstown flood.
I’ve got that book too! Ah, more to read and learn about :)! And thanks for the comment on word pictures — I seem to speak metaphor more than poetry. They are probably sister tongues, but there are few metaphor books and lots of poetry ones so I tend to miss the link. Good reminder!
Amy,
I am knitted to a farm in Virginia and a house in Covington, VA. Most of all I am knitted to a few people and I’d be happy to be with them where ever they may be. My heart is tied to them each day by more and more strands of cable.
I read 1776 and loved that book. I also enjoyed The Great Bridge and John Adams by McCullough.
Ah the strands of cable that are now used to knit us together! Oh the weaving that is made the world over on my behalf. I love/hate it (I want them all with ME).
Great words! It’s funny how I can see and feel the effects of America’s rebellious beginnings even now. As we live in China and I see the people so intimately connected to family, bloodline, and country, it can be hard to truly understand why. It’s so much easier for me to disconnect. There are pro’s and con’s to this for sure, but you are right that we are still tied together, the string might just vary in strength :)
“Vary in strength” … love it!