Traveling Mercies

Anne Lamott is kicking my butt! Of course she might not put it that nicely. For years I have heard references to her work, so I finally picked up a copy of Traveling Mercies and it's killing me! I'm either crying, laughing hysterically or driving my wife crazy with "hmmmm's" and "ahhhh's." I've read a good bit of it out loud to her so she could get a feel for why I'm reacting so strongly.

Lamott, or Annie as I like to call her now, has an enviable relationship with God. Agree with her theology or not, appreciate her language or not, she is intimately known by her Father and now so many others because of her stark honesty. Her personal story is interesting to say the least and her thoughts on matters of faith (especially forgiveness) are inspiring.

I was reading a section today where she talked about coming to grips with her own beauty. She was not a classically beautiful young woman and she found herself in her forties still paying way too much attention to her ever widening and sagging parts. But she found beauty in growing older. She learned to see herself the way God sees her. What a gift!

So many times we, to quote Stephen Sondheim, "see all the parts and none of the whole." God cares about the parts (hairs on your head and all that), but He sees the whole package and not only loves us anyway, but celebrates us as His grand creation!

I'm about 60 pages from finishing Traveling Mercies and I'm already looking forward to a re-read. I had a teacher who used to tell me to read things three times for comprehension. It will be a pleasure.