Overview

This eccentric title recalls a collection of tales first told to grandchildren at bedtime. Each chapter begins with a fun-to-read farmer-boy story from the 1940s, an era before industrial farming when horses, cows, and chickens were still members of the family. These anecdotes each launch a theme that splashes down with further development in later decades of life. Diverse topics include imaginative play, construction crew humor, animal intelligence, contemplative prayer and journal writing, rural and urban farming, communal wisdom, and affordable housing, along with a few serious pranks and the prophetic mischief that follows. This memoir is also a confession in the pattern of Augustine, reflecting on God's in-breaking initiatives and the writer's emerging sense of calling in lifelong conversation with Jesus. Its stories offer a series of curiosity-driven on-ramps into eight decades of transformative experiences for curious souls to ponder an open-eyed faith and a communal way of life for the long haul.

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9798385215263

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Reviews

"""Reading this book is like walking in the woods with a wise elder. David Janzen muses on the prodigal fertility of the giant Cottonwood, spots the return of the hunted-to-near-extinction jackrabbit, and relates insights on topics like how to build a reconciled community. As he weaves together stories from his life of adventure, lessons learned from hardships, and plenty of humor, Janzen proves to be the gracious mentor for which many of us long."" --Tim Otto, author of Oriented to Faith ""'But eating together is a way of falling in love.' What a beautiful way of putting it. David Janzen puts much beautifully in his newest book. He says that his Uncle Johnny understood something about raising spiritually awake boys. David is spiritually awake, and by reading this book, the reader has the chance to become more spiritually awake, too. You may become nostalgic for things past, but you'll also be propelled into a sense of wonder about things present and future--a truly hopeful work."" --Bren Dubay, director, Koinonia Farm"

Author Information

David Janzen is a member of Reba Place Fellowship in Evanston, Illinois. He has worked as a teacher, affordable housing developer, refugee asylum program manager, and nurturer of the latest generation of Christian intentional communities. He is the author of several publications on Christian community leadership, including The Intentional Christian Community Handbook and Seven Radical Elders.

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