One Saturday, I heard a knock at the front door. Reluctantly, I went to open it and discovered two nice-looking ladies outside. Finley grabbed onto my leg and immediately, the attention turned to her. "Who are you?" The older lady said bending down to look my 3 year old in the eyes. Finley was quite distracted by a butterfly that was floating in circles in our front yard. "Look!" Finley said excitedly (as all 3 year olds have a knack for changing subjects). The lady politely noticed the butterfly and then turned back to Finley. "Did you know" she said, "that butterflies only live about 4 days?" I thought to myself, 'thanks for the depressing news lady.' Thankfully, Finley didn't seem phased by the sad suggestion, but I was. Four days isn't very long. It seems like a waste that something so beautiful would only live for such a short amount of time. I thought about that little white butterfly that has been visiting us every afternoon in our backyard. I felt pretty sure that I had seen it for at least 5 days straight. As soon as I see it again, I'll know that the lady was misinformed. The next few days, I sat outside with the kids, expecting to see it swoop down into our over-grown weeds, but unfortunately, we never saw it again.
Perhaps this cycle of nature teaches us something reassuring about life. Now that the Fall is here, I'm even more amazed at how pretty this place is. With the leaves changing shades to red, yellow and orange, I often feel like I'm walking through a Thomas Kinkade painting. Yesterday, I held Finney up to her window and showed her the bright red leaves on the tree next door. I explained to her that the leaves change colors just before they are about to fall to the ground. "Why do they have to fall?" She asked. For the first time, the thought occurred to me that leaves only have one season of life before they die. At least they go out in style, in a bright and beautiful fashion...just like the butterfly. I guess it was never designed to be a sad experience. We may mourn the raking, but we never mourn the loss of the leaves. Nature happily follows right along and all of us benefit from it. With complete ease, the world renews itself month by month, day by day.
Again, I'm reminded of the brilliant design of our creator. I believe that He left us pieces of Himself in nature. I believe that if we sit long enough to take it in, we may learn more about His heart and His intentions. The thought of renewal feels like gold to me. That God gives us new leaves and new butterflies. It reminds me of how He works in our hearts, "though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day" (2 Corinthians 4:16). This speaks of His forgiveness, His attentiveness to our hearts. It tells us that no matter what we are going through, there is something redeeming at the end. It teaches us to embrace the seasons, with courage and trust. And to wait...for God to make all things new.
Perhaps this cycle of nature teaches us something reassuring about life. Now that the Fall is here, I'm even more amazed at how pretty this place is. With the leaves changing shades to red, yellow and orange, I often feel like I'm walking through a Thomas Kinkade painting. Yesterday, I held Finney up to her window and showed her the bright red leaves on the tree next door. I explained to her that the leaves change colors just before they are about to fall to the ground. "Why do they have to fall?" She asked. For the first time, the thought occurred to me that leaves only have one season of life before they die. At least they go out in style, in a bright and beautiful fashion...just like the butterfly. I guess it was never designed to be a sad experience. We may mourn the raking, but we never mourn the loss of the leaves. Nature happily follows right along and all of us benefit from it. With complete ease, the world renews itself month by month, day by day.
Again, I'm reminded of the brilliant design of our creator. I believe that He left us pieces of Himself in nature. I believe that if we sit long enough to take it in, we may learn more about His heart and His intentions. The thought of renewal feels like gold to me. That God gives us new leaves and new butterflies. It reminds me of how He works in our hearts, "though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day" (2 Corinthians 4:16). This speaks of His forgiveness, His attentiveness to our hearts. It tells us that no matter what we are going through, there is something redeeming at the end. It teaches us to embrace the seasons, with courage and trust. And to wait...for God to make all things new.
1 comment:
exactly...could not have been more beautifully expressed! What a gift you have, sweetheart! I love you! Mamma
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