A Walk About the Garden

Welcome! Let me show you around.

So this is how it works, every fortnight you get the Hortus Scriptorius newsletter in your email. I just call them “letters’, and in January, February, April, June, August, September, November, and December, those letters will be new. The other months I’ll take a break, and those letters will be edited and sometimes updated versions past letters.

So what is a Hortus Scriptorius letter like? Well, every letter is broken into ‘parts of the garden’ (listed below). There are currently a dozen sections of this garden, and in any letter we’ll explore maybe half-a-dozen together. Check them out:

The Courtyard

Here I tell stories about my life which I think may help illustrate the theme of the letter. Sometimes I write about the world at large. This is where you and I may have a nice chat about what’s happening in the world. I’ve written about the Holocaust, copyright, and my own education.

Sit down, let’s chat.

With Our Fathers

This is about fatherhood and about generations. I’ve written about my parents and grandparents, but mostly I write about my children. They are crazy Gremlins (in fact, I refer to them here as Gremlin #1 and Gremlin #2). I hope you enjoy them… I was going to write ‘as much as I do’, but that’s impossible.       

Flowerbeds

Here is where we talk art. This is the most regular section (if it isn’t Hortus Proprius), and I hope you’ll enjoy the wealth of beauty I can share with you. My comments on it are amateurish, but they are because of that the words of a true lover.

The Schoolroom

Here we speak of education. I spent much of my adult life tutoring or otherwise working around schools, and my wife and I homeschool our children (or, rather, will homeschool them — as our eldest is not quite four). Here is where I share with you what I know and what I am learning. For those interested, our philosophy is heavily influenced by Charlotte Mason.

Hortus Proprius

This is the heart of the letters. We talk writing. Specifically, as I’ve been composing my book on the Figures of Speech, I’ve been sharing sections here.

A Bench Under the Trees

Sit down on the comfiest part of the bench, dappled by light underneath these bright boughs, and share with me some articles I’ve been reading recently (or, as it happens, often not so recently).

The Amphitheater

A love of good decorative art is a must, but more pressing even is adoration of music. Here I share music (and very occasionally lectures). As common a section as Flowerbeds.

The Hammock

Very occasionally, I will share reviews and recommendations for longer works. So get comfy in The Hammock and try not to fall asleep (I never manage it).

The Shed

This is where I write about what I’m working on. What I’m working on right now is that book I talked about in Hortus Proprius and on these letters.

The Grotto

These are not letters about religion, but I’d be blind and dishonest to obscure how profoundly Judaism and Christianity (especially Catholicism) has influenced my life. I will sometimes talk about that here.

The Loud Music Played Way Too Late Into the Night

Sometimes even the prettiest garden has that annoying too loud music. And, though I try, this is not the prettiest garden. Here is where I advertise myself, where I try (I hope not quite desperately) to get you to pay me more attention or (occasionally even) some money.

So fellow scriptor horti scriptorii, I hope you enjoy.