Greetings from someone who was woken up around 2:00 AM and kept
up for what seemed like and may have been a couple of hours
because of a police helicopter circling the area. Still no
idea why... Definitely coulda done without that!
So I don't have much energy for writing today. Funnily
enough, I did actually finish two Valentine's Vignettes and
could send those. However, I wanted to hold those off for
a couple of weeks and focus at least part of this newsletter on
John Dye's 60th birthday which was a few days ago. Guess
that's what I should have worked on in advance! But,
unfortunately, I did not. So... I'm just gonna say a few
words then, hopefully, move onto something fluffy.
I have to admit, it was kind of surreal for me to realize that
John would have turned 60 on January 31st. I think since,
for me and likely for all of us, he's frozen in time as a man in
his forties. And I think I had, on some level, forgotten
that he was twenty years older than me. I also realized
that, this whole time, I'd thought he was Generation X while he
was, in fact, a Boomer. That's right. I've spent
most of my life crushing on a Boomer. And I'm okay with
that. :-) 
Due to some circumstances (don't worry, I'm fine!), I've spent a
lot of this last week thinking about decisions I've made in my
life. Sometimes they've been decision for something
(buying a house, keeping those mice, getting dogs, taking
certain trips, etc.) and sometimes they've been decisions
against something (dating, getting married, having kids).
And when I really thought about the decisions *for*, I realized
how many of those were colored by John's impact on my
life. In a roundabout way, he's why I moved out and got my
own place. He's why I've been to Mississippi, Georgia,
North Carolina, D.C., and Ontario. Because of him; I've
been to Graceland, the National Civil Rights Museum, the Little
White House, Warm Springs, various botanical gardens, multiple
zoos, and assorted other places with historical and ecological
import.
John inspired every Dyeland/Asteriana story, even the ones that
don't much involve Andrew. He made them all
possible. He gave me Joshua and JenniAnn in Cora's
kitchen, Crowley nestled near Yeshua's tomb, Yehuda on the
train, Ed and Steve kissing in the guest room, Emma's on stage
epiphany, and Andrew bringing light into so many terrible
situations.
I've met so many people because of John. Sometimes I knew
them only for a few precious moments, sometimes for a season,
and sometimes for years that, blessedly, continue to stack
up. This all started with Andrew bringing me comfort in
the wake of my maternal grandpa's death. But because of
this group that John inspired, I've had so many people to cry
with me and celebrate with me and who have let me do the same in
their lives. I'm grateful to them for that and also to
John.
I'm sad that John didn't get to live all of these past sixty
years on Earth. But I know that he's had an impact on
others during all sixty years. And I know he'll continue
to have an impact for many, many years to come. I thank
God that he was born and that he lives still.
Thank you everyone who has been a part of JABB, including those
of you who may only find this in the future. I'm glad you
were all born, too. :-)
God bless,
Jenni
Whew. And now I'd like to shift
towards Valentine's Day with a look at some romantic
tropes. Because, yes, I may have chosen to be single but
I still love me some schmaltziness.
Love Tropes in Dyeland/Asteriana Stories in
Honor of Valentine's Day
Opposites
Attract- I mentioned this one before but very
briefly. So to expand... while I can't claim credit for
them, Aziraphale and Crowley are this. One was an angel,
one was a demon when they met. Aziraphale is bookish and
prim and proper and reserved. Crowley is flashier and
more outwardly emotional. I think this applies to Andrew
and JenniAnn to an extent. Andrew is more reserved
whereas JenniAnn is the more outwardly emotional one.
He's more grounded and drawn to more physical things like
woodworking. JenniAnn is more airy and drawn to less
solid things like psychology, theology, etc.
Passion
is Evil- I'd like to think this is subverted in the
Dyeland stories. If anything, people being too logical
and buttoned up is portrayed as negative or at least something
to move on from. After all, the oldest created being
ends up showing up to tell Andrew and JenniAnn to stop acting
repressed. Joshua tends to be sympathetic towards those
who maybe made some poor choices when it comes to their love
lives. He is, however, less sympathetic with judgmental
types who snipe at others because of perceived sexual
immorality. Of course, romantic passion isn't the only
passion. I suppose religious zealotry is a type of
passion and that does tend to get negatively portrayed.
Smitten
Teenage Girl- As much as I might wish JenniAnn had been
introduced in her twenties... she was not. She was very
much this when she first met Andrew and was certainly not the
only one. The difference was while the other girls from
the early Dyeland period eventually moved on... JenniAnn tried
and failed. JenniAnn's family didn't understand this
given Andrew was an angel... a perfectly nice one, of
course. But not knowing she was ace (and she didn't know
herself), they were confused. Thankfully, it worked out
for everyone and JenniAnn's feelings for Andrew grew from an
unrealistic crush to a much move lived-in feeling of genuine
love.
Succubus
in Love- Not literally since Ed was never an
incubus. But he was sent to possess Steve and cause him
to do bad things... and I sincerely doubt Iggy would have had
issue with him using sensuality or romance to bring that
about. But Ed fell in love. And Steve fell in
love. And it was very, very confusing for Ed at first
but he came around. And now Joshua is marrying him off
in March. ;-)
Teacher/Parent
Romance- Well, teacher/grandparent. Ivy's teacher,
Mark Spelman, ended up marrying her grandma, Doreen.
Happily, they're still together.
What
Measure Is a Humanoid?- Yeah... so... Depending on
what you believe about angels, the angel/human couples could
be a little suspect. Beyond the age factor, there's a
question of what an angel's true form is. Well, I'm here
to assure everyone that the angelic forms of all the angels in
romantic relationships are... exactly what you're likely
imagining when you read the stories except no worry lines, no
environmental wear and tear, etc. When Andrew is in
Heaven, he looks exactly like Andrew on earth except lit up
and no physical manifestations of stress, sadness, or
worry. That's not to say there aren't angels with twelve
eyes and twenty wings that look like intricate geometric
figures. But that's not the group we're talking
about. The Watchers have other forms but whether I'd say
they were their "true forms," I'm not sure about that. I
think it's helpful to think about angels as one does
animals. Just as animals can look as varied as a
butterfly, a dog, and what you see in the mirror; angels in
the Dyeland/Asteriana stories have a wide, wide array of
shapes.
Unbroken Vigil- The closest true example is Ed in "The
Lost Sheep" when Steve is in the hospital with COVID.
The furthest he goes is to the adjoining bathroom and that's
only to call Ollie and arrange for their friends to video call
Steve. JenniAnn is reluctant to leave Andrew's bedside
at the end of "In the House of the Lord"/"The Altar" although
she does end up going to the hospital chapel... only to then
promise Andrew that she'll make "a home of this hospital" if
he doesn't get better. Andrew gets to return the favor
in "Shadowlands" after JenniAnn is shot. He's only
persuaded to go home and try to nap when Max and Reuel happen
upon him after a dust-up with JenniAnn's parents.
Finally, Josef kept Sarah comfortable and checked on her often
over decades of time in "Make This Go On Forever."
Crowley keeps vigil over Yeshua's body in "The Shepherd."
There
Is Only One Bed- How have I never covered this one
before?! It's one of my favorite tropes! Anyway...
Andrew and JenniAnn have gone through variations of
this. The first time they're in bed together is in
"Abide With Me" but I think it sort of doesn't count because
JenniAnn never lays down and Adam acts as chaperone. It
also only happens because Andrew has a flashback to
Afghanistan. The second time is much more legit and
happens in "Chava." After Chava finishes her story,
Andrew and JenniAnn go to the latter's chamber in the Tunnels
which, naturally, only has one bed. JenniAnn comforts
Andrew and they both sleep in the bed although aren't as
snuggly as they are later on. Funnily enough, Belle was
born nine months later which is a coincidence but one that
amuses me. Finally, in "The Family Tree," Andrew
realizes that rooms are scarce with a lot of the Friends
staying at Willowveil so he suggests he give up his room and
stay with JenniAnn. She happily agrees. He moves
back to his room after the holidays but after a rant from
Marty in "The Scribe," Andrew returns to JenniAnn's room and
now it's their room. In "The Lost Sheep," Ed and Steve
are anxious about Joshua seeing that they've been sharing a
bed only for him to then put them up in a ship cabin that has
only one bed.
This newsletter is dedicated to John Dye
for continuing to inspire us, sixty years after his birth.
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(Photo Credits: The photograph
used on this page is from Touched by an Angel and owned
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