The Climb...

I've been wanting to write to explain how I decided on a name for this blog . It was important to me that I come up with something personal and meaningful - especially since this experience is such a huge change for us. Plus, who wants a boring name for a blog? Isn't what you decide to name your blog one of the most important decisions you will ever make? That's a lot of pressure.


Since I also wanted something creative,  I thought I would try to play off a nickname of Boston. I have heard of Boston referred to as "Beantown" so I spent some time trying to think of things that could work with that: "Beantown Baby?" "Going to Beantown?" "Beantown...something..." When none of those ideas were working, I decided to do some research on other nicknames for Boston (and yes, when I say research, I mean "googling" it - but calling it "research" makes it sound so much more important).


I soon learned that the nickname "City on a Hill" is also used for Boston. Although this nickname is probably the least popular and least used of them all, it is the one with the most historical significance.  Boston was called the City on a Hill by John Winthrop, governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. When he journeyed to Massachusetts in 1630, he challenged the Puritans to "choose life" and to stay strong in their commitment to the Lord. He reminded them that the eyes of the world would be watching. 


"For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause Him to withdraw His present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world."


(excerpt from http://religiousfreedom.lib.virginia.edu/sacred/charity.html)


This part of Boston's history really spoke to me and I knew this was the nickname I wanted to use. I then discovered that two presidents have made John Winthrop's "City on a Hill" sermon famous: JFK and Reagan. These just happen to be my two favorite presidents to study and I was incredibly impressed with the irony.

What Boston may have looked like in 1630
Trimount in 1630. By S.L. Gerry, James Burt, 1836

So we are going to journey up to the City on a Hill. It will be challenging we know, but we are super excited about this calling and look forward to all the adventures along the way. Maybe when Addison is older, we will be able to tell her crazy stories about the time we climbed to Boston (uphill...both ways...in the snow).