Written by: Ed Chinn
Narrated by: Kara Lea Kennedy
Washington, DC, summer of 1994. From the muggy blanket of city heat, sounds, and odors, I stepped into a new and magical cocoon of coffee aroma, cool air, muted greens and charcoals, and Sinatra crooning “In the Wee Small Hours.”
They called the place “Starbucks.”
It was more than a coffee shop. I had surely slipped through a hidden door in the cosmos, passing from mess and madness into peace and protection.
One day, I noticed the 23rd Psalm reads like David wrote it ... in Starbucks. Fear, evil, darkness, and death strutted through the mean streets just outside. But inside, a lavish table was spread in full view of David’s enemies. Cups of heavenly arabica beans overflowed with goodness and mercy.
“Hey, Barista, may I dwell here all the days of my life?”
As I saw it, Starbucks was (and remains) more than a coffee shop; it is a domain, a sanctuary, a counterculture. People can choose to walk away from the turmoil and despair and slip across the border into that new country. Ah, a place of tranquility and freedom.
Similarly, I started The Timberline Letter to be more than a newsletter.
It speaks of—and from—a jurisdiction, a sanctuary, a zone. The Timberline Letter encourages others who yearn to live above the noise, pollution, and raging conformity. A place that invites others to think clearer, hear deeper, and see further.
May 31 will mark our one-year anniversary
In that first year, we have featured essays and articles on a wide sweep of life’s best moments and highest matters. We don’t quarrel, speak the language of contempt, or fall into spiritual or cultural vertigo. We love the Apostle Paul’s framework: "... Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” [1]
In our first year, we’ve not issued one request or promotion about paid subscriptions.
Anyone may continue to read The Timberline Letter through a free subscription. But after a year of producing reliable quality and variety in our posts, I am now asking free subscribers to consider shifting to a paid subscription. That will help us increase our quality and reach more people.
Love compels me to ask for your support as we build something valuable, solid, enduring, and resilient.
I care about The Timberline Letter, and I care about those who do, and those who will, benefit from it. We provide support, encouragement, and inspiration. Present and future. How? Through our focus on living at a higher altitude of mind, spirit, and human associations. We encourage and support each other.
Will you please consider—or continue—a paid subscription? Your investment will surely bring a joyful return. Ascend higher, up to a separate country of life’s higher possibilities. Join with others who yearn to think clearer, hear deeper, and see further.
Please ask any questions, challenge anything we’ve done or written, or suggest any changes.
[1] Philippians 4:8taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW LIVING TRANSLATION, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
The Timberline Letter is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
