Eugene Peterson and Quiet Living

I enjoyed an article about Eugene Peterson entitled, “A Patient Peterson” by Susan Olasky (World, vol. 23, no. 9, 2008). (It is available online here, but you have to register to see the entire text.)

Peterson and his wife Jan seek to live patiently, quietly, and deliberately. “We like quite, we like rhythm,” the article quotes Peterson. He says that the rituals of daily life “give a quality of sacredness to it.”

The article describes Peterson’s daily routine. His weekdays begin around 5:00 in the morning when he makes coffee for himself and his wife. They spend the next hour and half by themselves, privately reading Scripture and praying. At 7:30, Peterson takes a morning walk, and then he joins his wife for breakfast. He spends the mornings writing, and they always spend afternoons outside—they snow ski, kayak, or canoe. In the evening, they prepare dinner together and read to each other.

Although most people who work or have children cannot entirely emulate the patterns of the Petersons’ lifestyle, the point of the article is clear. One does not need to be retired to combat the busyness of American life. We all can do things to resist the allure of our high-speed culture. Perhaps by turning off the T.V., checking our email less often, or going for a walk, we will begin to experience the peaceful rhythms of life that our hectic schedules tend to suppress.

Learning Patience

I get really discouraged when I go to the grocery store and see already-grown spices and vegetables that are ready to be purchased and planted by an aspiring gardener like me. They are very tempting.

As for my vegetables and spices, they seem like they have a really long way to go...

Vision and Foresight

This plaque is displayed next to The Senator, the tallest Cypress tree in the United States. My husband and I loved our visit to The Senator. The tree is beautiful—it is 118 feet tall and 35.4 feet in circumference. The words on this plaque read, “The National Arborist Association recognizes this tree and commends those who had the vision and the foresight to preserve it.”

I find these words moving because a preserving vision and foresight is something that our culture lacks. This applies to preserving something in nature, but even more tragically, it applies to preserving less tangible things. A family heritage. A good reputation. A marriage. All of these are things that must be preserved, and preservation always requires vision and foresight. It means living less for the thrill of the moment and more with a long-term end in sight. It requires both good reason and a good imagination in order to draw conclusions about how the things we do now will affect the outcome later.