Day Twenty-Six: The Dome
I have moved headquarters for the last few days before the release. The cabin and its company (Masi) were beautiful, but we needed to spread out for a moment as things start getting crazier leading up to Saturday. So we are in one of my favorite homes EVER. Apart from it being magazine-worthy and palatial beyond description, it happens to house one of the most humble and giving families I’ve ever had the privilege of knowing. I am so blessed to have the friends I have.
This house also holds a special place in my heart for another reason; 5 ½ years ago my husband and I were married here in the beautiful backyard. I couldn’t have asked for a more remarkably gorgeous setting.
I awoke this morning and walked downstairs with my son to have a cup of coffee. Well, I was going to have a cup of coffee. He was going to have 3 eggs. My soon-to-be 18 month old son knows how to eat! I fed him and then let him run around the ample real estate, which he is greatly enjoying after being in the cozy quaintness of the log cabin. As he ran and chased Molly the Maltese pup around, I walked into the foyer at the front door, which is one of my favorite spots in the house.
If you walk in from the grand entrance, you open a door into a large receiving room that is very reminiscent of old-world Italy. A breathtaking chandelier hangs over a beautiful round table that mimics the shape of the foyer itself- a circle. To the left is the dining room, straight ahead is a sitting room with a piano, and to the right is the study. But straight up is a dome. This is why the foyer is my favorite.
The dome was just a dome for many years, which was a beautiful architectural feature on its own. But in recent years the homeowners decided to update some of the wall treatments and flooring in the house, and especially in the foyer. They had a specific vision for the dome. They wanted a hand-painted mural depicting the resurrection of Jesus.
Now, this could go either way- it could be spectacularly executed, or it could look like a church nursery painting on a wall. So it’s really important to get the right artist.
My, how they picked the right artist! I visited during the renovation process and saw her painstakingly painting details with the tiniest brush I’d ever seen, perched atop the tallest ladder I’d ever seen! She wanted it to be perfect. And she didn’t even believe in the power of Jesus the Savior. But her work on this project drove her to ask more and more questions and to open to the possibility of Jesus’ saving power.
So I went to the foyer this morning after my coffee and just stood, staring straight up. I admired the humbly victorious images- the soldiers cowering in fear, the angels surrounding Jesus, Him standing on a cloud above the world, and the cross in the background, so as not to forget the price. It’s powerful. I had tears in my eyes as I looked, reminded of my price paid. Reminded of the love it must have required. Reminded of this same love that drove my brother to leave such a legacy, one worth writing about and sharing with others. The same love that drew an unbeliever to Himself through a mural painting.
And I worry about a book release party. *rolling my eyes at myself*
- C
EVENT PAGE: Desperate Hope Book Release & Concert
TO PURCHASE TICKETS: Book Release Tickets