I have sheer curtains on my bedroom window that faces the East. Yesterday at midday I pulled the right side to close off what was becoming a blinding sunshine. We had been expecting rain but I rarely believe the forecasters these days because even if they are correct to a degree, our rain is often a brief interlude rather than an all-day event. The same can be said of sunshine where we live. We take it when it comes but never count on early reports.
As I sat here earlier this morning to consider what might be a worthwhile topic for today, I noticed the drawn curtain. I could see only half of the scene outside and only half of the breeze was kissing my toes, exposed as they were and perpendicular to the floor in my trusty recliner! I had to get up and open to the full view to get the effect of the large maple in shade, towering over my favorite delicate pear tree to the left. She was shimmering in the breeze and everything seemed then to be in balance.
That whole brief experience – narrow view moving to a wider picture – reminded me of the “glass half-empty or half-full” phrase. I have had over 100 days now to make something of the slower pace of life that the COVID- 19 pandemic has afforded me. I hesitate to judge it without a lot of reflection because I think it is more complicated than just a passing thought can afford it. It may be that today is perfect for making one of those “pros and cons” lists to see what has been helpful, what has been challenging and what has been downright difficult in this spring-to-summer hiatus. If I manage to stay with the reflection long enough, maybe I’ll start working on a way to let go of outcome in case this does become what people are calling our “new normal.”
I was listening to a program last night on my computer about “re-writing our own life script.” During the call-in portion the speaker, John Newton, asked the caller how it would feel to live in a place of “not knowing.” What would that feel like? I found the question rather interesting because I didn’t react negatively to it! Usually my first thoughts upon waking in the morning find me running through my schedule for the day (after I am focused enough to even know what day it is!) in order to know how quickly I have to move, whether I have had enough sleep to meet the challenges of the day and how much of my incidental agenda I will be able to fit in between appointments and meetings or whatever has been previously scheduled.
I am sometimes awed at how much can be packed into a few verses of Scripture. What I mean is more likely where my mind and heart go after reading a short section, like today’s gospel about the rich young man who couldn’t quite “go the distance” in surrender. (MT 19:16-22)
I smiled as I read the Psalm for today – one of the praise psalms toward the end of the book, Psalm 147, wherein we find a weather report of sorts. In verse 16, the psalmist sings of God’s activity thus: He spreads snow like wool; frost he strews like ashes. Yesterday I was thinking we were surely headed for spring but this morning there’s lots of activity out there, wind and blowing snow – as if last week’s dump of almost 3 feet of the white stuff were not enough!
