I opened my eyes to the sound of the bedroom door being gently closed…my husband’s attempt to keep from awakening me. I smiled because that meant he was feeling better…up making tea and getting his day started as usual. Such good news. I turned and looked out the bedroom window at the ridge beyond the far field. It was a dull, grey morning with a steady misty rain making everything look like a faded WWII movie in an English countryside.

By this time of the year, the majority of the leaves have fallen…blown away by the wind and rain. Rather than a dismal view, I was greeted by Autumn’s bold invitation to look deeper at the waning colors. While most of the leaves of the giant sycamore trees have fallen, those in the uppermost branches retain their last flash of color looking all the world like starry crowns. While I love the flashy bright colors of early fall, it’s these days that draw me in closer.

West Virginia is covered with dense deciduous forests in a tangle of underbrush. The first time you see a bit of color is in the spring when the redbud and dogwood trees bloom before the rest of the trees leaf out. Now, at the end of their growth cycle, that dense under canopy pops with bright reds, oranges, and yellows. It’s Mother Nature’s curtain call…the encore that you might totally miss if you don’t look deeper and pay attention.

A lot of life works in the same way…inviting us in to see the rare beauty after the really big show. That which draws us in touches our spirits and forces us to find the magic in life. If you watch the main stream new outlets, you are likely to see only the sensational and the gaudy…the ugly and the frightening. Because that’s what sells. That’s what stirs up the populace to gather pitchforks and torches, pitting neighbor against neighbor. 

You may sit there in your chair with your morning coffee and think, “What difference can I make? The world is so big, and I am so small.” Well, this is true…but, let me tell you something. The smallest, most insignificant gesture sent out towards another will cause a small shift in the forces of nature. It will spread like the ripples of a pond, every growing till it crashes into another’s love-sent ripple. And eventually, the tide will shift, a voice will grow, a heart will mend. No kindness will be unnoticed.

Every single thing we do, good or bad, will be reflected through the large lens of life. I prefer to send out love and light and peace into the world because I know that will feed the planet. If you want a garden to grow, you don’t throw seeds out on the parched earth and expect to grow anything. You have to break the ground open with diligence and strength. You have to plant the seeds with service and hope. You have to fertilize and water the garden with an abundance of love and light in order for it to grow into a rich harvest. 

God gives us every one of the tools we need to do this. I saw a meme yesterday. I can’t find it now, but I’ll paraphrase.

Narrator: Imagine you have been assigned to the crew of a starship.
You: Cool!
Narrator: But, the time travel is really, really slow and you’ll be with a lot of other crew members for a really long time.
You: Oh, ok. We would have to cooperate and get along and make compromises in order to finish our mission successfully?
Narrator: Yes, that’s exactly right.
You: I can do that! By the way…what’s the name of the starship?

Narrator: Earth.

🌎

“She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.”

Proverbs 31:26 ESV

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Peace on Earth…Goodwill to All

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