Ruthie Bird

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Ruthie Bird

Monthly Archives: May 2014

High Living and Plain Thinking

22 Thursday May 2014

Posted by Sarah Ruth in Musings

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Last summer I worked for a program called Summit in Manitou Springs, Colorado. The town was nestled on an incline crowded with crunchy-granola hippies and tourist shops between Garden of the Gods and the base of Pike’s Peak. It was glorious, gorgeous, and lacked the despicable east-coast humidity. But what Manitou lacked in sticky condensation, it made up for in dry heat. One fiery afternoon, I decided to walk down to the pool to cool off for a bit. I had the day off and the sound of children’s voices flooding over the ridge told me that the super cool neighborhood kiddos were there to play. Once I set my things down I walked to the side of the pool to join the cannon ball crew competing for the biggest splash. “You can’t jump in here!” Rafferty, age 3, proclaimed emphatically followed by a laugh of disbelief. “Why not, Raff?” I asked. “Because you are a grownup! Grownups don’t jump into the pool, silly!” I furrowed my brow mischeviously and cracked a smile as I asked Rafferty another question, “How old do you have to be to be a grownup?” “Twelve,” he said with a grin, then he held his nose and immediately jumped into a ball and into the water.

When I was a kid, I associated being a grownup with having life figured out.  I may not have discerned a definitive age like Rafferty of when someone became a grownup, but I did imagine what it would be like when the time came. Needless to say, the grown-up territory comes with lots of surprises.

What I have learned since I passed beyond the 23-year mark is that growing up is full of misleading ideals that are at the root of a lot of anxiety and confusion. Many of us face a series of crossroads in our early adult life, and sometimes they turn into what we term ‘quarter-life-crisises.’ How do we discern what to do as we navigate the transitions into adulthood and begin to make decisions for ourselves? A few years later we must face the question “what am I doing with my life?” yet again post-grad school or post-disasterous first entry level job. It’s not all bad, just unexpectedly confusing. But what I’ve learned is that the seasons of change and uncertainty-those growing up pains-don’t have to lead to anxiety or indecision if they are wrapped in the fabric of faithfulness.

Some of the best wisdom I’ve gained along the way has been from my delightful friend GK Chesterton. In an essay titled On Scandals and Simplicity, Chesterton says that we don’t need more “high thinking and plain living” sorts of people. Instead, the world needs people of high living and plain thinking. High thinking can get us into trouble.  I don’t think Chesterton conflates “high thinking” with thinking well and deeply about something to know what it is and if it is true, rather this precisely is what he means by plain thinking. He says high thoughts are the “harsh and fanciful” mass of popular ethics; they don’t often conform to reality. Today, this amounts to what Dr. Anthony Bradley writes of in his 2013 article on “The New Legalism.” High thinking causes us to shoot towards ideals and distractions and miss the real stuff of life. High thinking can give us the crescent of a vision for our lives, but it can’t set down a true course of action for us to follow. It also brings us anxiety when we try to figure out what the contours of our life ought to look like outside of living well and inviting others to live well too – according to the way God has ordered the world.

Instead of seeking first to change culture or the world, to be extraordinary or awesome, we are called to fidelity to God and to others: to seek first His kingdom.  This is the fountainhead of a virtuous and fruitful life. It’s about my faithfulness, and not so much about the quantifiable result. This is what Chesterton means by high living. A wholesome understanding of high living diminishes the gravity of our daily decisions, while increasing their weight. With virtue at the epicenter, the crucial questions we have to answer shift from which school I should pick to whom I should be while I am there.  For sure, these decisions of what to do are important, but they are of secondary importance next to the decision to live highly.

Oftentimes we don’t know what will happen two steps down the proverbial road, but we usually have an inclination of what that first step must be. Even so, we tend to over think our way into indecision and inaction, we wonder “What am I even doing?” We have lost our aim. We could be doing something, but are too afraid of making a wrong decision to take a step forward. In Orthodoxy, Chesterton wrote that “A man was meant to be doubtful about himself, but undoubting about the truth: this has been exactly reversed.” Now, he says a new humility has been introduced into life. “The old humility was a spur that prevented a man from stopping: not a nail in his boot that prevented him from going on. For the old humility made a man doubtful about his efforts, which might make him work harder. But the new humility makes a man doubtful about his aims, which will make him stop working altogether.”

Indeed, paralyzing indecision and anxiety often result from fear or a desire for control the outcome of a situation. We must be content to remember what CS Lewis says, that success of any outcome is up to God, our task is to be faithful. Or what TS Eliot says in the Four Quartets, “For us, there is only the trying. The rest is not our business.” I don’t know when exactly someone becomes a grownup, but I do know that forgetting the first thing, faithfulness wherever I am called, is plain living and the least grown-up thing in the world.

High Street on Market, Philadelphia

19 Monday May 2014

Posted by Sarah Ruth in Coffee, Food, Urban Adventures

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High Street on Market

As I mentioned yesterday, High Street on Market is just around the corner from Independence Hall and is a block away from Christ Church (and the Franklin Fountain. Thank God for summer and ice cream!). This tasty farm-to-table spot is not meant to confuse! It’s called High Street but can be found on Market Street. It reminds me a bit of Taylors, one of my favorite sandwich shops in Oxford.

My parents came to Philly for the John Jay Commissioning ceremony last weekend. Of course, we had to spend a day exploring the city’s abundant history and delicacies. Our first stop to refuel after Independence Hall, Carpenter’s Hall, and the Portrait Gallery was High Street on Market. The weather was beautiful, and the music inside was obnoxious (the only downside to this place), so we decided to enjoy our meal outside at a sidewalk table in the shade. High Street on Market, PhiladelphiaWe were not disappointed. As you can see, our meal was fresh, relaxed, and delicious. I’ve craved the grilled broccoli and blistered grape salad ever since we left. Continue reading →

Why Philadelphia Isn’t so Bad After All

18 Sunday May 2014

Posted by Sarah Ruth in Food, On The Street, Urban Adventures

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

High Table on Market, Philadelphia, Philly, Philly highlights, Urban Adventures, Why move to Philly

PhiladelphiaI’ve spent the past five months living just outside of downtown Philadelphia. I’d always heard people make comments about Philly as they would of New Jersey or Long Island, “You’re moving to Philly,” they’d ask me…rhetorically of course, the words dripped with condescension. “You don’t want to move there, do you?” Rhetorical question once again. I got the point. Philly, they said, had too much crime, was dirty, and wouldn’t have anything for me, a 23 year-old urban explorer, to do.

Actually, they were wrong.

Philadelphia wasn’t as romantic as London or as bustling as NYC, but Philly surprised me in a million ways. Sure, there were sketchy parts of the city-just as there are in NYC, London, or even Denver-but you learn quickly to avoid them (except if you want to find cheap groceries, then you grab friends and make an event of it). The city wasn’t any dirtier than any of the other cities I’ve lived in over the last three years, but what struck me most was how quiet it was, how appropriate the people-to-sidewalk ratio was, how beautiful the murals adorning the sides of old warehouses and buildings throughout the city were, and how history was thick and rich everywhere I turned. I loved it! I like to say the only thing I drop like it’s hot is history knowledge. I learned so much about our great nation’s history (USA!) and saw several of its most important edifices and artifacts too.

James Madison

And the food! How can I forget the food (or coffee?)? As a hard-core glutard (gluten-free sounds too hoity-toity to my ears), I feel like a pain and get embarrassed when I have to ask for alternative dishes at a restaurant. To my delight, I found Philly to be more than accomadating, even a haven for foodies and those with way too many food allergies (aren’t they the same thing?). I can’t wait to come back for a day trip with NYC friends for a food and coffee crawl.

Independence Hall

One of my favorite spots sits on Market Street, a block away from Christ Church (where the Founders and Framers worshiped in the 18th century! When I say it’s gorgeous, I mean it. Plus, seven signers of the Declaration of Independence are buried in the graveyard outside!) and a five minute trot from Independence Hall (HELLO Georgian architecture! Makes me swoon. Seriously.). Tomorrow I’ll tell you all about it.

High Table on Market Street

Philly, you’ve been fun.

NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette by Nathan W. Pyle

04 Sunday May 2014

Posted by Sarah Ruth in Art, Brooklyn, Food, NYC, On The Street

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Nathan Pyle, Nathan W. Pyle, New York Tips, NYC, NYC Basic Tips, NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette, NYC Tips, Surviving NYC

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Each city has its own code of conduct that goes deeper than neighborhood slang, driving idiosyncraseis, or favorite sandwich. After living in five large cities in three years, I know full-well this especially is true of New Yorkers. Why did I get yelled at for standing on the left side of the escalator? How can I tell what the light on top of the yellow cab means? How do I successfully eat a slice of pizza while en-route to wherever it is I am going? The questions seem endless, but now – thanks to Nathan Pyle – they have been answered.

In his newly released book NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette, writer and artist Nathan W. Pyle lucidly positivizes the unwritten rules of the largest city in America in GIF and written form. Nathan has lived in NYC since 2008 and has picked up on the social subtleties of the city that never sleeps. He illumines the basics of NYC life in simple black-and-white images that are sure to make you chuckle and exclaim a knowing “ah-ha!” with every page:

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Continue reading →

Ruthie Bird

Ruthie Bird

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Sarah Ruth (Ruthie Bird) is a Fellow at the John Jay Institute. She graduated from The King's College in NYC and subsequently studied at Oxford University. SR loves adventure and has moved 17 times in the past 5 years. She is in search of the best cup of coffee the world has to offer, loves Brooklyn, GK Chesterton, and desires to pursue all things Good, True, and Beautiful.

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