Evening August 5th, 2014 Bright orange red colors from the southeastern sky greeted Myrtle and me this morning. Myrtle was ready to get the day going. I blundered my way to the garage to get her dry dog food and then into the kitchen to open a can of dog food partially added to her dry dog food. After feeding Myrtle I took in a bit more of the sunrise and then went back to bed. Minutes later Ed came in with Meredith. Meredith was restless so I took her into the living room and a few minutes later lay her on our bed while Shirley and I readied ourselves for the morning. After a bottle and a bit of play, Meredith is again asleep, the usual way of things after her morning bottle. As I write, I feel peaceful, quiet, like the hushed air in this house. It is so peaceful that I can hear Meredith across the room, her slow rhythmic breathing bathing the room in soft harmony. I am always in awe of how our senses can give us what we sometimes require to find amity with our struggles. Meredith will be nine months old soon, I see Meredith two to four times a week and even though I see her quite often I see the wonderful changes that are happening with her. Her hands are now tools that help her grasp, pull, explore, hold, and comfort herself. Her fingers move about on every object that comes within her reach. She is beginning to perceive the textures of everything she touches. Meredith shakes each object, checking for sounds like the rattle might give her or the chimes in her play apple. She hold things out before her eyes and examines the objects looking at the shape, testing the texture both with her hands and with her mouth. Everything has to pass the mouth test. Now we are more aware of what we leave around Meredith. Even our watches and bracelets, our jewelry is in danger of being cross-examined for taste and mouth worthiness. Our senses sometimes fill the gap where our mind and our heart cannot go. When I cannot get beyond my thoughts or my emotions, I might listen to music. I might go out in the backyard where there are sounds and scents that can calm me. The mint garden, the confederate jasmine, or the hint of rain when the nitrogen from an approaching storm fills the air can alter my feelings. Sitting on the patio while the rain falls on the roof is soothing. The sound takes me back to my grandparent’s Florida cracker house with its corrugated tin roof. The droplets have their own cadence measured in the intensity and volume of the rain. I can see each raindrop splashing one by one. Then they land in squads, platoons, then companies and battalions and on up through regiments of rain drops. Rain landing and plopping in beautiful waves of sound. The hearing ear and the seeing eye, the Lord has made them both Proverbs 20:12 I will be like the dew to Israel; He will blossom like the lily, And he will take root like the cedars of Lebanon. His shoots will sprout, And his beauty will be like the olive tree And his fragrance like the cedars of Lebanon. Hosea 14: 5-6 The verse from Hosea reminds us that when we despair, when we are burdened with all the trouble we know that is when God’s compassion is showered on us. His comfort is healing and good that God will seem like a new lily, His presence will be anchored for me and you like the strong roots that hold the cedars to the ground. His goodness will be like the sweet aroma of a Lebanon cedar. God understands how our senses can be a part of our healing. He knows how we treasure the sweet smells of forgiveness, especially when we turn back to him after we are overwhelmed. We are given our senses to find our way closer to God. We are given our sight to not only see His love through His grand design but also to see how His wisdom will bring us back to our place in His plan. When I look at Meredith I understand God’s love and His grace. I know part of Meredith’s life will be influenced by me and what I do. I hear her cry when she needs comfort. I see her raise her hand to me and show me that she wants my help. That is all I can ask for and it is given by grace. God is good. Papi
Posted on: Tue, 05 Aug 2014 20:17:57 +0000
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