Hello! Hope you’re well. Here’s the latest:
Stateside!
Well, the Gerhardts have arrived back in the good old USA. Cue the joys of free refills and good Mexican food and driving on the right side of the road and being in person with people we’ve missed a whole lot.
America’s great and we’re thrilled to be back for a bit, but have you guys noticed how hot it gets south of the Mason Dixon?? Eeesh.
London
On our way out of England, we spent a few nights in London. Kicked around Covent Garden, Shoreditch, and Bloomsbury. Made a trip to the British Library (Codex Sinaiticus! Paul McCartney’s scribbled lyrics to “Yesterday”! The Tyndale Bible!), rowed a boat in Hyde Park, and caught an Agatha Christie play on the West End. Had to sleep in a hotel room the size of postage stamp, but man we love that city.
Quick Trip to Ancient Assyria
In London, taking our kids to the British Museum was high on our list. It’d been about 20 years since Jennifer and I had been, and it was so fun to be there again—this time alongside our daughters.
What was the biggest highlight, you ask? Man—you always ask the best questions. Easy answer: the Assyria exhibit. The Egypt/Assyria/Babylon stuff would always have been of interest to me, but now being neck-deep in Holy Ghost Stories and the world of the Old Testament and ancient Near East, well, I was walking around those exhibits with wide, hungry eyes and a new appreciation for every single artifact.
Do I have any photos I’d like to share? Again with the perfect questions. Why yes—yes I do.
These enormous winged, human-headed lions stood guard at the doorway of the throneroom of Ashurnasirpal II in Nimrud, one of the principal cities of the Assyrians (along with Nineveh, located close by). When Jonah went to Nineveh, these statues were 100 years old. [Want to zoom in? Here’s a high res image from the museum.]
The wooden structure behind the statues, by the way, is a reconstruction of the Balawat gates, which secured the palace of Ashurnasirpal’s successor, Shalmaneser III.
These bas-reliefs also adorned doorways, this time in the temple at Nimrud. The Assyrians had a thing about doorways—a doorway brought with it an obligation to ward off any evil spirits that might pass through it. (Evidently, a pinecone and a bucket would do the trick.)
This next stuff, though, might have stolen the show:
At first glance, you probbly notice the big chariot wheel and the horses in front. But take a look at what’s happening in the chariot.
Lion hunting was a favorite sport of Assyrian monarchs. In those days, a proliferation of lions was wreaking havoc in the kingdom, causing fear and panic among the populace. To demonstrate his power over the beasts terrorizing his territory, the king would have a group of lions rounded up and let loose in an arena, where he would be driven around in a chariot valiantly impaling the trapped lions with spears and arrows.
Look closely below the horse and you can see it’s trampling the carcass of one of the offenders.
There’s an entire room full of this at the British Museum. Here are a few more details:
I don’t know about you, but I find myself rooting for the lions here. I do love that years later when Daniel finds himself at the mercy of lions in the kingdom of Darius, Yahweh preserves both Daniel and the lions.
I saw a few other (amazing) things at the museum I’m dying to show you, but they relate directly to an upcoming episode of Holy Ghost Stories, so I’ll force myself to wait til then to share them.
5 Cool Things
Retro Pop - Really digging this playlist on Spotify lately. Especially Jon Batiste’s “I NEED YOU,” Wyn Starks’s “Circles,” and (though I’m still not sure exactly what the song is saying) Samm Henshaw’s “Church.”
Hero Rat - You probably knew that Cambodian rats have saved thousands of lives by being trained to sniff out land mines. But in case you didn’t… (thanks Jen!)
Dislocated - A fantastic essay from my wife about how she dislocated her shoulder during our first week back in the States and also about what we said when our daughter wanted to know what to tell people when they ask where she lives.
Scribd - Okay: Scribd is Spotify for books and audiobooks. Thousands and thousands of titles available for $10/month. It is amazing and you should absolutely check it out. Only complaint is that you can’t read on a Kindle device (but of course you can’t; it’s a direct competitor).
In Sitka, because they are fond of them,
People have named the seals. Every seal
is named Earl because they are killed one
after another by the orca, the killer
whale; seal bodies tossed left and right
into the air. "At least he didn't get
Earl," someone says. And sure enough,
after a time, that same friendly,
bewhiskered face bobs to the surface.
It's Earl again. Well, how else are you
to live except by denial, by some
palatable fiction, some little song to
sing while the inevitable, the black and
white blindsiding fact, comes hurtling
toward you out of the deep?
***
Alright—that’s the latest! I’d love see you this summer at The Storied Family, a parenting workshop my wife and I are doing in a few cities—we’ll talk about how to leverage the power of Story to help anchor your kids to God and make them sturdier human beings. You should come!
(Oh—there’s an online option if you can’t make it in person. And if price is an issue at all, just pay what you can!)
Next time, big news: the launch date of Holy Ghost Stories Season 2! Til then, a question: I told you what I’m happy to be enjoying again in the USA—what’s your favorite Very-American-Luxury? Just curious.
Gratefully,
Justin