Anne Bradstreet (1612-1672) was eighteen when she left the comforts of her home in England to live in the Massachusetts Bay Colony with her husband Simon. Their existence was spartan at the outset. They moved six times and eventually settled on a farm in North Andover, Massachusetts. Late one evening, Anne was awakened to shrieks of “fire,” as their home suddenly became engulfed in flames. While the family survived, they were rendered homeless. She with her family had sentimental attachment to their cherished homestead. Three of Anne’s children had been born there and her oldest son married in the parlor. Anne sifted through the rubble, her cherished books and writings reduced to ashes.
Anne was already a celebrated poet. She didn’t write poems for a wide audience. She intended her reflections on everyday events–her marriage, illnesses, and children–to serve as an avenue into prayer with God. Without her knowledge, her brother-in-law took her poems to England to have them published. One of her poems, “Upon the Burning of our House” reflects on the loss of their cherished farmhouse. The poem moves from shock and wistfulness to hope. Two sections from her fifty-four-line poem are included here. One footnote: pelf is a Middle English word meaning riches. We can identify with her anguish over loss and draw strength from her resolute trust in God:
Anne Bradstreet
And when I could no longer look I blest the name that gave and took,
that laid my goods now in the dust.
Yea, so it was, and so ’twas just.’
It was his own, it was not mine,
far be it that I should repine…
There’s wealth enough, I need no more,
farewell, my pelf, farewell, my store.
The world no longer let me love,
my hope and treasure lie above.
Rev. Dr. Peter James served 42 years as the senior of Vienna Presbyterian Church in Vienna, VA — 21 years in the 20th century and 21 years in the 21st century. He retired in 2021 and now serves as Pastor-in-Residence at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.
Even as a pastor, prayer came slowly to Pete. Read Pete’s story.