Greetings! Thank you for coming by.
If I were to attempt an explanation of what this Substack is all about, the best way to describe it would be ‘a collection of things that move or inspire or delight Ali’. Much like the ‘commonplace books’ of old, here I gather fragments I want to record for myself, and trust that there are other souls out there who might also be moved or inspired or delighted. But that, I know, is not so enlightening as to what those things might be, especially if you don’t know Ali, and maybe not even if you do, so there are a few recurring themes you will find here.
One of them is partly evident in the title, a favourite line from a favourite poem by a favourite poet. That is the idea of a transcendent longing, or what the poet Rilke called die Sehnsucht, or existential homesickness, those messages from afar, or echoes of Eden, if you will, that come to us at moments in our life in this world. I once wrote an article expanding on this idea here: https://www.case.edu.au/products/homesickness-a-conversation-alison-payne. So I’ll collect here writings that either hint at this idea, or invoke in me this longing and come as a message from behind the veil.
I also often share poems and things I come upon of faith or beauty. I believe beauty is a pointer to truth and goodness (and a source of joy).
I recently adopted a cat, who I called Ebenezer, as a mashup of The Christmas Carol (by Charles Dickens) and 1 Samuel 7:12 in the bible and a great grandfather. So I am morphing into a slightly crazed cat lady …
I also run and do crochet and love books and reading and art and music and fires and cheesecake.
