About

I'm Hannah DeRespino. I live in New England, and the wild beauty of our coastline has long been a source of peace, emotion, and inspiration to me. It has also informed, in many ways, my personal relationship with the God of nature who created it. The title of my blog is drawn from one of my favorite poems, which is entitled 'Breakage'. It is by Mary Oliver, and it encapsulates a bit of what the sea has taught me.

I go down to the edge of the sea.

How everything shines in the morning light!

The cusp of the whelk,

the broken cupboard of the clam,

the opened, blue mussels,

moon snails, pale pink and barnacle scarred—

and nothing at all whole or shut, but tattered, split,

dropped by the gulls onto the gray rocks and all the moisture gone.

It's like a schoolhouse

of little words,

thousands of words.

First you figure out what each one means by itself,

the jingle, the periwinkle, the scallop

       full of moonlight.

Then you begin, slowly, to read the whole story.

source: the poetry foundation, emphasis mine

I'm a Christian, whose first call is to lean ever more deeply into the heart and word of Christ, seeking to follow his example and teaching as authentically as possible in our world today. The tension and beauty inherent in the very concept of 'faith' is something I wrestle with and understand a tiny bit more every day I live. I will share some of that as I walk through it on this blog.
I'm especially passionate about the way scripture informs our interaction and pursuit of justice in the social sphere- what does it really look like to pursue God's Kingdom here below as it is (and will be)above? Issues like
-systemic racial inequality,
-the deep and oppressive roots of our nation's high abortion numbers and other prevailing inflictions of violence on fellow image bearers, 
-the glorification of war in American society,
-and the objectification and exploitation of women (particularly through various aspects of the fashion industry)
are some of the issues which I am pursuing as I begin writing here, and I invite you to learn alongside me as I share my evolution here.
I am grieved with the condition of the American church- with her widespread division and turning to the idols of political statesmanship, popularity, and worldly power. Rather than leveraging to help the needy and committing to speaking a measured and gracious whole counsel of truth that costs something, it seems that both liberal and conservative institutions have followed after either the powers that be in the world of politics, or the prevalent voices of the world of culture. I see both as two equal sides to one failure. A failure to gaze to Christ for both our safety and our holiness. This blog will be also a space in which I explore this problem, examine my own part in it, and address my fellow Christians with exhortation and suggestions for solutions to better enable us all to live out the gospel in a purer way.
I also plan to amplify voices not my own, particularly those that are marginalized or different from my own. I believe in counter-cultural conversations between parties, that will result in growth and greater understanding, ultimately leading to a fuller body of Christ.
I hope, most of all, to increase the glory of God and to be a small part of bringing understanding to his people.
I am humbled if you choose to join me in doing so here.