SUMMERSTIDE FEAST 2024

Photos by Rebecca George Photography

The Invitation

I don’t know about you, but I find myself feeling quite world-weary at the moment. Each news cycle seems to portend a new calamity, missives of violence and war, greed and dishonesty, ever growing political turmoil… and all that crazy weather. I fall asleep at night with a vague sense of unease and wake yearning for something that is both tangible and true. Something beautiful. 

Not a superficial beauty, mind you, but one that is real. And what do I mean by this? Here is an example: 

I visited nearly a dozen venues these past two months searching for the perfect spot for our next dinner… the one you are about to be invited to. Many of them were lovely. But they were lovely in a manicured, overly-tended sort of way that felt wholly fabricated. What I wanted was a place that spoke of the wildness of nature, of the deep peace and restoration it can offer, of the way it manages to be beautiful of its own accord. A place that feels both substantial and true. 

I have found just such a spot. And in the process was reminded of the words a friend’s mother had inscribed above her kitchen door. Life can be beautiful. Even in the midst of the mire. Especially in the midst of the mire. We need only look for it. 

I cannot change what is happening in the world around us. I feel, in fact, deeply impotent at my inability to do so. But what I can do is create something beautiful. And somehow, that feels like the creation of something true. Seeking beauty in the midst of chaos is, perhaps, the only way we can remind ourselves of what matters. I suppose it’s the thing that makes it all worth it. 

And so, I invite you to join me now on this lofty quest for beauty and truth. I hope it will offer rest and a sense of comfort.

The Experience

We watched the sun set on the edge of the fields at a monastic retreat center. Guests bravely shared beautiful tidbits of poetry and writing from their favorite authors. The food was fresh and nostalgic, a last taste of summer. Around the table, we contemplated the possibility of something wonderful… something fantastical and too good to hope for… but also wholly attainable. We whispered a wish and sent it up into the night. We left under a dense blanket of stars, satiated in soul.

“And so it is that there is something in us all that loves the Beautiful. Wrought in the heart of a beautiful thing is the spirit of Truth itself.”

-Arthur Mee