just dilly

hey there! this is a short literature assignment, which was to write a response to an excerpt of John Smith’s A Description of New England.

I’d love your feedback on it, and I could turn into a longer story, if anyone would like me to. 🙂

It is from the viewpoint of Isabelle Wiltshire,  an 18 year old young woman living in England.

“As a young person, reading Sir John Smith’s account of his journey stirs in my heart an ache, to go, to travel, to see this ‘New World’ in the light he has painted it.
He speaks of a charge laid on us to further the knowledge of our God. How long have I desired this very thing? If I went to the New World, this new country of ours, would I be of more use there than I am here? Is there a place for a young unmarried woman with no experience of the world? Could my life better put to use there?
I care not for myself to be taken care of, nor for my own safety, but if I have children, perhaps disease would be easier to battle on that coast. Perhaps they could make a name for themselves there, as not many people can here in Mother England. Perhaps raised in a wilder place, they would be stronger, able to work harder, with improved minds accustomed to difficulty.
And then there is the matter of savages. Some say danger, I say opportunity. It may be that my Lord is commanding me to go. Perhaps He has called me to follow others to a wild land, paradise, to bring those natives to His heart.
Schools will be planted, churches organised, and we may bring those Indians to our Lord. Really, if even one came to Him, my going would be entirely worthwhile.
One soul is worth any danger.
If I went, would I set myself apart as I am longing to do? The middle daughter of a clergyman has nothing to her name, and not any dowry to speak of. Anything I can do, my sisters have already done.
Except this.
I am going to the New World.”

Hey there!

This year one of my goals is to read 35 books, something I didn’t accomplish in 2015, and I’m hoping to make more time for reading now than i did last year. So, I have chosen some books to start off with, and if you have any suggestions, I’d love to hear them!

1. Here There Be Dragons // James A. Owen // Mikaela got me this, plus a ton of others, for Christmas, and so far I’m really enjoying it.
2. Persuasion // Jane Austen // I have read two of Miss Austen’s works thus far in my life, and now I’m trying to add this one to my list.
3. Snoop // Sam Gosling // this is a book I started to read at my brother’s house during our Christmas visit last year.
4. The Four Loves // C.S. Lewis
5. All of Grace // Charles Spurgeon
6. Les Miserables // Victor Hugo // I’m not sure I’m going to get through this one this year…
7. The Last Dickens // Matthew Pearl //another gift from Mikaela
8. Fool’s War // Sarah Zettel
9. Freefall to Fly // Rebekah Lyons
10. Resistance // Jaye L. Knight
11. The House I Loved // Tatiana de Rosnay // another gift 🙂
12. The Great Divorce // C.S. Lewis
13. The Moorchild // Eloise McGraw
14. Hearts Awakening // Delia Pair
15. I, Coriander // Sally Gardiner

I still need 19 books, so again, I’d love more suggestions! Thank you for reading!

Dill

I think I’ve settled in too well. I’m too used to being lukewarm, and too used to being safe, and I ache to be aflame, even though it’s sure to be painful, but grace is a healing power.

My soul is pulling me away, tugging me away from this place, and while I’m willing, at times my body stiffens at the thought of poverty and squalor, and I’m scared that I won’t cope well, cause I’m a girl with big dreams and a soft heart and a willing spirit but a sinful nature inclined to holding back and being fearful of change and uncomfortableness.

I need to go. To wrench my heart away from the comfort of every day life, and to leave the people I care about most. To tramp into an unknown place and feel out of place  and way out of my comfort zone because really that’s how you grow and live, by overcoming those certainly-coming lapses of faith and leaps of fear, lifting your spirit by bringing to mind what you’re living for and especially who you’re living for because His grace is sufficient.

Maybe I’ll learn to never settle for less and to dream bigger and to pray constantly and to never forget that it’s His will not mine and that the reason I’m alive is to bring glory to His name not mine and maybe to be a light for others is all I’ve ever been meant for, if it’s by speaking or hugging or traveling to the other side of the world and living apart from everything familiar  and giving my life for His sake because even though it’s not much, it’s all I have to give, and it’s not even mine anymore, if it ever was, because it’s been His for a while now.

~ from my journal