Today’s florilegium is a round up of a few of my favorite posts from the month of July. Good words deserve to be celebrated and shared. Read them all or pick one or two to savor. Either way, enjoy!

Ann Voskamp, How the American Dream Becomes Christmas in July

Want to dream big for your kid? Start here. This is what I hope for my children. This is the kind of kid I want them to become.

***

Elizabeth Kolbert, “Spoiled Rotten” in The New Yorker

If Ann’s post above provides a vision of what I want my children to become (generous, grateful, godly), this article provides the anti-vision of what I don’t want my kids to become (irresponisble, immature, entitled). Read it and weep for the future of our country. Then call a family meeting and assign chores to your kids.

***

Angela Alaimo O’Donnell, My Life as a Cento

I love Angela’s writing. I wish she blogged. She doesn’t, but every couple months she writes a knock-it-out-of-the-park post for Tweetspeak. This one is all about collecting words and the ways they transform us.

***

An Interview with Nancy and Mark Duarte

Nancy and Mark Duarte own a well-respected presentation design company in Silicon Valley. Because of the presentation Doug and I did at our church in February, I read Presentation Zen, which quotes Nancy. I liked what she said so much I copied it into my journal. Turns out she’s a true kindred spirit: a Christian entrepreneur with a big heart for Jesus and a deep desire to obey his words. You’ve got to read this all the way to the end. It made me cry happy, amazed tears.

***

Glynn Young, The Poetry Alcove

Glynn Young ushers you into his favorite local bookstore, up the narrow stairs, and into the poetry alcove. Duck inside. Grab an old book off the shelf. Curl up on the pillow beside the big, gray cat. There’s only one word for this piece: delightful.

***

Kelly Sauer, Ireland Up Close

Gorgeous photos accompany this essay about sight and vision, about leaving home to come home.

Florilegium comes from two Latin words, meaning flower (flor) and gather (legere). Legere is closely related to the Latin word for reading (lectio). So a florilegium is literally a gathering of the flowers of reading: a collation of the best words, the best books.