By David Werther.

Mary Chapin Carpenter, The Age of Miracles (Zoe, 2010)

           “Introverts are energized by solitude. We are recharged from the inside out, from the forces of our internal world of ideas and feelings. Just as a geyser finds its power from a subterranean water source, introverts derive strength from hidden places. We generally fill our tanks in private or in the presence of one or two close friends, or else in a public place without interacting with those around us.”* Were she a Christian, Mary Chapin Carpenter would be the patron saint of introverts. Those like her who’ll “never be safe in crowded rooms” will find solace in “I Have A Need For Solitude,”** and know how liberating a long drive alone can be (“The Way I Feel”). Carpenter has described some of the songs on The Age of Miracles as “reports from that strange and mysterious territory known as Love and Marriage.”*** The reports are mixed. On the one hand, Carpenter is conflicted, unsure “whether to leave or to stay” (“Zephyr”), “to settle or to run” (“Holding Up the Sky”). On the other hand, though she might throw down her wedding band, she hasn’t thrown it away (“I Put My Ring Back On”) and recognizes how great the loss would be if she did (“We Traveled So Far”). That sort of insight and understanding is, I think, what Carpenter means by miracle. The Age of Miracles is beautiful folk music for grownups.

*Adam S. McHugh, Introverts in the Church (InterVarsity Press, 2009).

**Don’t miss the beautiful version of it on amazon.com.

*** http://www.myspace.com/marychapincarpenter.