Today, I was sitting in my armchair, looking out at the street. The sun's rays were dancing on the leaves of fall and creating a glow on the pavement.
As night rolls in, so does the mist and impending fog. I think that I could take this example two ways. As the fog starts in, the entire block is shrouded and shadowed, until the trees and buildings are nothing but vague spectral forms that give cause for pause. Or the fog is a dance of mystery, a voice that beckons, come see what is beyond me. Just wait and I will open up and you can see the sun rays light the street.
The bewildering cold that is midnight, sends more than a chill, it reminds me of dark times, friends lost, relationships that are teetering and the things I could have done better. or the night brings fascination with the stars, their number, beauty and brightness, the imagination of other worlds, other suns that light other planets, and how God's creation is always moving, always changing in its dymanic.
See, I am a firm believer that life is an everchanging force. I do not believe in anything remaining static. After all, even the solid subjects we look at are mere reflections of interrupted light, or light permitted. Atoms, molecules, nanocells.
Instead of noticing the wide expanse of the beach, I notice the sand. My favorite rocks on a shore are the tiniest pebbles. It is the smallest things that give the most happiness, and make the most difference. The sand moves, because the tide moves each grain, and as each grain shifts, it pushes on another. Tectonic plates shift, ever changing the tides and our coastline. Powerful waves wash over rocks and spill them. A single footprint carries grains for miles.
When we look at life that way in the most acuteness of sense, then does the huge things in our way really matter? Does the huge dune up ahead seem so large? Is the fog so despairing? Can we break through this path, this wall, this fog?
Can we bend our perception just a bit? Can we seek further than the edges and find other views from where we stand? Must we walk a distance to find those views?
Can we change them? Rebuild?
At least I hope we can.
I hope that the matters that are prevalent in my life, whether in sun or fog, still dance, move, have a rhythm of purpose. I pray that certain friendships will no longer stay lost, or that relationships will grow deeper, and love will abound. Most of all love, to abide in grace, and grow in hearts.
If I could have anything I wanted for Christmas, my gift would be the renewal of love, the freshness of the sun dancing on the street. The newness of a fresh fallen snow, the coziness of a good book, and the fellowship of friends and family.
Happy holidays everyone. I hope you find the way through the fog of your life and see it for what it is, the welcoming of the sun and dew of a new morning.