August | 2025 | Toward Beauty
4 posts published by Stephen Holmgren during August 2025| Toward Beauty
4 posts published by Stephen Holmgren during August 2025| Toward Beauty
Summer visitors to Charlevoix encounter at least two things about the area: first, that this part of Michigan is a haven for boat lovers and especially cruisers on the Great Lakes; and, second, that the city of Charlevoix is the home of Earl Young’s so-called ‘mushroom houses.’ The first observation regarding boats and the appealingly […]| Toward Beauty
Exterior view of Earl Young’s Weathervane Inn As a young man from the rural north of Michigan, Earl Young aspired to produce ‘natural houses’ in the spirit of Frank Lloyd Wright, his inspiration an…| Toward Beauty
When thinking of the beauty of a person, his or her character far outshines any outward physical characteristics a person might have. And when thinking of a beautiful community, we may do more justice to those who live in that area by engaging with some aspects of their daily lives than by focusing more simply […]| Toward Beauty
Among the charms of Wales are the narrow gauge railways that meander up from the coast through the verdant dales that lie between often steep mountainsides. Several of these lines were first established as early as the mid-nineteenth century as simple and utilitarian slate delivery railways. Ongoing preservation efforts related to them have attracted increasing […]| Toward Beauty
Our Ted Brewer designed Nimble 24 sailboat, DAYSTAR There is an affliction that is common to owners of sailboats, known as ‘one-foot-itis.’ The name refers to our ever present desire to have just t…| Toward Beauty
While undertaking my studies in ethics and moral theology, I discerned a significant parallel that has continued to shape my world-view. The parallel I have in mind connects how we understand law with how we understand ethics. In turn, I have come to see how this discernment applies also to how we appreciate beauty. First, […]| Toward Beauty
A book of essays by Peter Kreeft Peter Kreeft has written an illuminating essay on the use of indirect communication by CS Lewis and Walker Percy. In it, and in a humorous recording of its content,…| Toward Beauty
I have had a lifelong love of trains and of the stations where we board them. My love for them is partly inherited. My grandfather worked his whole career on the Soo Line RR, having retired as a Conductor on the overnight “Winnepeger,” running from his home in the Twin Cities to the city of […]| Toward Beauty
In order to appreciate the beauty of tensile architecture, we need to remind ourselves of how most traditional buildings, from the ancient pyramids and China’s Great Wall through to the tallest modern buildings, have been built. Familiar architectural structures rely upon compression, the stacking of weighty materials upon others in a stable way to achieve […]| Toward Beauty
William Holman Hunt, The Shadow of Death (1870-73) When we as Christians pray, we don’t simply pray to God. With faithful assurance, we pray with and through God! As Paul tells us, “When we cry, ‘A…| Toward Beauty
Michael Pollan’s writer’s hut, intentionally situated by a boulder on the brow of a hill Recently, I observed my middle son moving a black plastic pond module around in a small space in his New Orl…| Toward Beauty
