Welcome Morning, by Anne Sexton

There is joy
in all:
in the hair I brush each morning,
in the Cannon towel, newly washed,
that I rub my body with each morning,
in the chapel of eggs I cook
each morning,
in the outcry from the kettle
that heats my coffee
each morning,
in the spoon and the chair
that cry "hello there, Anne"
each morning,
in the godhead of the table
that I set my silver, plate, cup upon
each morning.

All this is God,
right here in my pea-green house
each morning
and I mean,
though often forget,
to give thanks,
to faint down by the kitchen table
in a prayer of rejoicing
as the holy birds at the kitchen window
peck into their marriage of seeds.

So while I think of it,
let me paint a thank-you on my palm
for this God, this laughter of the morning,
lest it go unspoken.

The Joy that isn't shared, I've heard,
dies young.

i've been so struck lately with this idea of painting a thank-you on my palm. it's an image and an idea that will not shake itself loose from my consciousness. so today i'm sharing five things that i'm thankful for, one for each finger extending from my palm:

pinky: i love my big green mug with matching saucer that holds hot tea every single day. i've named it my "love mug" or "mug o' love." :)

ring finger: i'm thankful for a friend that will geek out with me over high school musical, who understands my need to place the blanket just so on the bed and who relaxes in cooking and rejoices in sweeping.

middle finger: i'm thankful for my strong body, which enabled me to walk an hour from church home when i couldn't find a place to buy my bus ticket. and i'm thankful for the opportunity to listen to david gray and feel the crisp fall air redden my cheeks.

first finger: i'm thankful for my family, one that does well with "away" and who will mill about the kitchen table while on skype with me, giving me a taste of home from my own kitchen table.

thumb: for places that are mine. places that make london seem like my home and not just some large soul-less city in which i am lost. i have a couch. a table with flowers. a place to work, to smile and to serve and to learn patience and grace. a church. these roads and buses that are now familiar. and the little corner store that sells me chocolate. :)

So while I think of it,
let me paint a thank-you on my palm
for this God, this laughter of the morning,
lest it go unspoken.

The Joy that isn't shared, I've heard,
dies young.

This is joy. And I'm thankful. so in my own way, I'm painting it on my palm and sharing it.

dofnoaeinapierneit

yesterday i only had an evening shift, so i met up wth sarah at her lunch time and we bought giant lounge-y sweaters for only five quid each. they are heavenly. they're way too big for us, but that's what makes them so lovely. they're cozy, comfy, "it's fall and i'm sitting on the couch with a blanket drinking tea and reading" sweaters.

so, this is not for sure, but i think i've found a babysitting job! one of dominique's friends brought her three year old by the restaurant last night and when she heard that i had worked with kids and loved them she said that they were looking for someone to babysit about every other week and that if i was free next wednesday she'd love to have me! i really hope this works out. her daughter is precious. we sat on the floor and put on lip gloss and read a book about a guinea pig last night. i think i'm in love. i probably can't count anymore the number of children i've fallen in love with, but that doesn't make it any less sincere this time around.

i've got more exciting things coming up soon, but this is just to let you know that i haven't fallen off the face of the earth. :) love, love, love.

Stories from the Restaurant

1. During almost every shift I get asked where I'm from. I used to say "The States" but realized that everyone already knew that and were asking where in the states, so now i say, "oregon, just north of california." everyone is so encouraging about what sarah and i are doing. "good for you" they say, "enjoy your time." and then i walk away with a smile on my face. that is, if i haven't been roped into a political discussion. :)

2. besides sarah, i have one real friend in london. hayley is an aussie that works at hardy's with me and who will be leaving october 25th to move to canada. she and i have clicked really wonderfully and i'm already wondering how i will do without her. i would tell you all about her, but it would take awhile and i would mostly be describing the nice friendly comradeship that we have together.

3. tony (bar manager) has taught me how to carry about eight clean wine glasses in my left hand alone. and i bet i could get it up to ten or twelve. i have long fingers. i feel rather accomplished.

4. hayley and i are obsessed with chocolate. i think i would eat healthier if i didn't work everyday with an aussie who offers to buy cadbury chocolate bars for me when she goes out to get one for herself. i think i'll go on a sugar fast after she leaves for canada. still, better to be friends with a chocolate lover than with someone who is "meh" about chocolate.

5. i have discovered that i don't take it personally when i am yelled at by the chef, but i cannot stop myself from getting really mad and staying mad for about half an hour. hayley and dominique tell me to brush it off, but i am by nature someone who does not like to keep their mouth shut when yelled at. it's really hard for me to walk away without saying something cutting in reply.

6. the regulars are recognizing me now. and i recognize them. stewart and his wife veronica have told me all about the royal academy of music just down the road and about the events that i can attend there for free. one lady told me how dominique's dad (the old owner) sent her boxes of good food when she was in the hospital and how for two summers now her 17-year-old son has worked there under tony.

7. i eat such good food for lunch and dinner every day that i work. and sometimes when the chefs are bored they'll make desserts for me and hayley. i'm especially fond of the chocolate fondant. sooooo good. i am a lucky girl.

8. i'm learning alternative british restaurant vocabulary. it's not "silverware," it's "cutlery." and it's not "ketchup," it's "tomato sauce." i say "to-mah-toe" now instead of "to-may-toe." and i say "cheers" on the phone when someone makes a booking. some brits say "bye bye" when they end a phone conversation. i can't help but find that really funny every single time. :)

9. hayley and alberto think it's hilarious to try to freak me out with food. actually, usually what happens is that alberto (a chef) will try to scare hayley first, and then she'll come up to me and tell me that alberto needs to talk to me, at which point i will walk into the station and either have a whole eel wiggled in my face, or be offered a plate of crispy whole pig's ears. both of which totally surprised me. especially the eel. i bet it was kind of hilarious. :)

10. my favorite story - the other night a friend of two of the regulars, this big black man, was teasing me about something and hayley says to him, "have her sing something for you. she sings." he looks at me and asks, "sing something. what do you sing?" "everything" i reply, "what do you want me to sing?" "gershwin," he says promptly. so before i can think i start in on "it had to be you" (this was near closing, so the restaurant was pretty empty). and this man starts snapping his fingers to the beat and interjecting little jazzy vocalizations in this wonderful louis armstrong voice. it was so much fun. we stood there and sang "it had to be you" all the way to the end - me doing the melody and him singing along in this beautiful throaty made-for-jazz voice. when we finished everyone clapped and he left, but i seriously couldn't stop grinning the rest of the night. man! i miss singing! it was just the best part of my whole night and probably my whole week. surprises usually are. and musical surprises always are.

that's it. the end of a ridiculously long update. but i thought you might appreciate it. :)

shiney cows, yoghurt drops, fancy shoelaces

this is how much i love oxford:


on my list of my 5 favorite places in the world, oxford is just below portland, tilikum, and the coast. i know. it's an intense love. sarah and i visited it this last sunday. we sat in a park and got away from the noise of london traffic. we laughed at the people trying to boat down the river and actually laughed until we cried about "shiney cows, yoghurt drops, fancy shoelaces" (yes, they're misspelled on purpose. or actually, we're spelling them right for once). if my anne-ish instincts are to be trusted, (read about patty's place if you don't know what i'm talking about) then oxford and i are not even close to being done with one another. i have a funny feeling about the place.

hello??

i wanted to say, i know there are a fair few of you who read this, but sometimes i don't believe it.

so...could you comment? even just a quick, "LISA!! You're so beautiful and wonderful and I miss you like crazy." you know, something simple like that. you can even copy and paste that sentence and it will be that much simpler. the thing is, i just really like to hear from you all. and! it will encourage me to post more often. so see? everyone wins!

thanks friends. and family.

love, love, love.