Chapter Twenty: A Joyous Anniversary
one year of The Lily of Shalott?!
Hellooo, dear! *opens the gate on the side of the cottage, leading you through a morning glory arch* I thought a picnic on the lawn would be a lovely spot to celebrate. *we sit on a blanket in the grass spread with a proper picnic lunch* Hard to believe it’s been a YEAR of running this newsletter (or blog, depending how you look at it) though I guess it’s partly because I was absent for awhile XD But goodness. A whole year ago I discovered Substack when my friend
A bit on the origin of The Lily of Shalott, since I realized I’ve never actually explained XD It began as my Instagram handle, then my Substack, and slowly seeped into being my username elsewhere per usual. I’d settled on TLoS as a play on my name… and a nod to Tennyson, also the Lily Maid scene in Anne of Green Gables, and my general love for Arthurian times. But what started as just a name soon became something bigger. A mission was sprung! To create beautiful things and spread Christ’s light, to encourage sweetness across the corners of the internet I’ve taken up residence in.
I hope that the content I share—in all forms—brings a little happiness to your day. And reminds you, most of all, of Jesus! What a glorious heart of grace and love He has for us, what sweet intentionality in which He truly makes everything beautiful in its time. We are so cared for, my friend!
And goodness, I really don’t have much else to say, but I am truly grateful for this blessing of an endeavor and I’m so very glad you’ve come along for the journey! I found out today that TLoS is read in 19 states and 5 countries— wow🥹 What an honor. Thank you so so much for reading my rambles!!! (I love you.)
Happy 1st birthday TLoS— so much joy has come from writing these emails!💜
And now, we shall move onto the rest of this post which involves whimsy and updates on various subjects!
Bible verse(s) of the day:
For we are his workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand,
that we should walk in them.
Ephesians 2:10 ESV
A Peek Inside A Writer’s Mind
I’ve got a surprise for you lovely subscribers in honor of today HOWEVER to make sure it’s the best it can possibly be I’ve decided to include it in my next newsletter. What with traveling—literally proofreading this in our hotel room hehe—and camp later this June, I’ll have just a bit more time in between everything to polish it up nice. But for now, I will hint that I am very excited for a mermaid-y summer XD
A snippet from a special project to tide you over hehehe:
Carina zipped into the outskirts of the kelp and, rather than holding still, followed the movement of the leaves. Swaying, swaying. No crabs to be seen. Her plan appeared to have worked quite swimmingly! A great relief as she didn’t dare go further into the forest without a light. The sleepy mermaid decided to wait a little while longer to make sure the coast was clear and in the meantime swam just inside the border, looking for sea stars. A glint. A glimmer. She stopped in her wake. What was that in the sand?
Lost In A Book
Lately I’ve read Jill Barklem’s Spring Story from her Brambly Hedge series (delightful), some picture books with the twins (so-so), a couple more just for me including Linnea in Monet’s Garden by Christina Björk (adorable), and I finally checked out Arlem Hawks’ Across the Star-Kissed Sea from Libby again. I’ve been postponing my hold for weeks as I didn’t have the brain space to read it and now that I do have the focus and made a little progress, I’ve gotten busy and nearly have to return it again. *sigh* Oh well, at least I read a little further XD I couldn’t extend my borrowing time so I placed another hold (3 weeks wait, alas) and will have to turn to other literature meanwhile.
Bookish quote of the day:
She had always envied the wind. So free. Blowing where it listed. Through the hills. Over the lakes. What a tang, what a zip it had! What a magic of adventure!
~from The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery
Whimsy, Please!
*takes a kaleidoscope out of the picnic basket*
Blueberry bracelet!! I love the colors.
A living castle with a personality and opinions is so much fun XD
Whenever Castle Glower became bored, it would grow a new room or two.
~Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George
Tucked In A Hatbox
I’ve been thinking a lot about one of our old neighbors, Christie. The sweetest lady, somewhat older than my mom, friendly, and curly-haired. I remember the day we met her; my sister and I were on the steps and she told us she was moving in beneath us and I liked her right away! My siblings and I were in her wedding, and I recall often slipping through her sliding door to sit in her office to chat, one of those times she showed me that one painting of Jesus, my family and I played the train board game she had one visit, another afternoon I helped her brush her labrodoodle—Bella’s—teeth on the front steps, I complimented her Christmas tree and she gave me a candy cane ornament off it, we brought her Nutella when she was fighting cancer, she told us about swimming pigs in the tropics with a twinkle in her eye… a beautiful soul. She’s in heaven now having the time of her life I’m sure!
C’est La Vie
Life lately has been improving, sweeter days more common than hard ones. Some highlights from May:
Back in March I decided to try Waterloo sparkling water since they had interesting flavors and pretty cans. I think the peach one is my favorite!
Adventured with mom and siblings one day and: got barbeque and peach ice cream at Ham Orchards, sidequested to Lowes and bought a fern (her name is Priscilla), saw an eerily bold mouse, and stopped in Walmart where I got a couple of notebooks—one for poetry and another (pocket sized) to replace my full one. (A finished notebook?! Crazy, I know XD)
On Mother’s Day we drove around the nearby farms and looked for horses, my favorite was the pretty black one that looked up from eating to look at us. We also stopped at the little park in our local historic downtown. A lovely spot with a fountain and gazebo— and just behind it a Victorian house with rocking chairs.
Wildflowers GALORE! I mean seriously, tons and tons of Queen Anne’s Lace. And a good dash of Texas Thistle, Indian Blankets, Evening Primroses, Brown-eyed Susans, and others I don’t know the names of XD
It’s been extra nice lately sitting outside in the grass. Birdsong, sunshine, and crickets are such a pleasant accompaniment.
Needed to replace some worn out clothes and Target had the cutest colors in! Pretty pastels and mermaid-y designs. I almost got a dress with green fishes on it but the lining was too short so it looked odd. *sadness* Oh, and that same day there was ANOTHER RAINBOW?! I love rainbows so dearly.
There was a frog in our garden bed!!!!!!!
Spent the day at Half Price Books by myself and it was so fun! I got to browse around CDs and books, had a coffee and croissant at the cafe next door, and even wrote a little bit!! A couple of ladies complimented my outfit, my hearttt. But what really made my day was the lady who was looking at my shopping basket and said she liked my choice in books😭 SHE LIKED MY CHOICE IN BOOKS!!! And she showed me what she was looking for (an Emily Wilde novel I believe) which I know some friends have liked. I wish I’d asked to exchange emails or something XD In my few hours of browsing I found quite a lot of books but narrowed it down to a small stack and came home with: a Glen Miller CD, Fancy Nancy and the Mermaid Ballet, Ella Enchanted, Summer at Tiffany, a mint condition Rainbow Valley, and Fairy Haven and the Quest for a Wand (which I flipped through and found it had mermaid illustrations and the main one is named Soop, so, you know…)
Went pottery painting for my sister’s birthday and picked out a huge mug because it was oddly less expensive than the daintier ones and it could double as a bowl XD Super excited to see how it turns out! I ended up going with an Angelina Ballerina sort of theme :D
OH MY WORD— another rainbow, and a double at that!!!!!!!
Slowly writing letters to penpals again, there’s a certain kind of joy when making things for people and I love paper crafting. Going back to allll the old favorites recently XD
Went to a local camera shop to have my film developed and end ended up buying a camera AHHHH. Like I mentioned in my last newsletter I had been eyeing Canons and they had some point-and-shoots. I initially just wanted to look at them but the one I got was decently priced, in good condition, and I had had a hard time finding one online XD So I’ve got my first real digital camera! A Canon Powershot A640 hehe. The shop had quite the selection and the staff were friendly, definitely a place to visit again!
Lots going on musically in recent weeks— playing my guitar, listening to old favorites like TobyMac, discovering new favorites such as Strings And Heart, and enjoying 1950s, 60s, and 70s music.
I’m sending this newsletter so late at night because we flew out to Southern California this afternoon. A few fun moments: the lady in front of me was wearing something sparkly that caught the light and made rainbows on the ceiling, since I didn’t have internet I listened to the Sound of Music soundtrack the plane offered, and I started reading the book I brought with me— Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart!
Also I somehow reached 200 followers on my Instagram?!
Some favorites, new and old:
❁ Mary Poppins (1964)
❁ @jessleart on Instagram ✨
❁ my brother’s linktree (he makes music!)
❁ The Saturdays by Elizabeth Enright
❁ Evergreen Love by Strings And Heart
❁ Holy and Anointed One by Vineyard Worship
Thank you again for your love and support this past year! I’m ecstatic for what’s to come ☺️ Until next post!
Yours devotedly,
Lily ♡