A Walk

I had been inside all day.  I had woken up late, and my afternoon had been spent in between my computer, my fabric, a BBC miniseries playing on the TV, and dinner.  The sky overhead was bleak and cloudy, the air was cold coming in my window, and the never-ending hum of electricity was growing old.  A feeling of dullness hung over me.  Very undesirable.  Hardly uplifting.

Then I was checking my facebook (not feeling like doing much else) and a friend of mine posted that they had just seen a double rainbow.  While I knew I likely wouldn't see a rainbow, still I felt the urge to get outside, out of the house, out from the hum of electricity, and take a walk with just myself and God.

So I pulled on my hoodie and slipped on my sneakers and headed outside.  For those who don't know our house, we live on a very short road that is part of a series of three short roads all at a right angle to each other and connecting with a main country road coming out of town.  We have trees surrounding us on all sides, in a similar fashion to a clearing.  And as some of you know, I've had it with trees.  Well, too many trees at once, that is.  On a day like today, I felt I couldn't even see the sky for all the trees-- there was just a flat blanket of dark clouds overhead.  Suffocating.

Anyway.  I walked down "John Street" and turned onto the other short road that leads down to the main road.  As I did so, a fresh breeze greeted me, coming up through the tunnel of trees on either side of me.  And down at the end of the road was our neighbor's field, and there I could see... the sky!  It was no longer a flat blanket of dark clouds but the dome of beautiful sky.  There were still clouds, but they were light-colored, happy clouds, not dark, gray, angry ones. And in the midst of them, there were two patches like eyes, and through these patches poured brilliant golden sunlight in radiant shafts.  Once I reached where the roads met, I stepped off to the side and stood there, gazing at the resplendent display and feeling the breeze pressing against my face.  After a whole day of gray clouds overhead and dull fluorescent light inside, the sunshine and breeze sent a thrill to my heart and filled my spirit with happiness.  There is something so beautiful about the things God made.  There is something so wonderful about stepping away from man's little creations and being alone with God, enjoying His creative power and beauty.  And there is something so freeing about talking into the wind and knowing only the birds and the squirrels and my Creator can hear me. 

Picture taken by my Aunt Catherine

I stood for a couple minutes thus, and then turned to walk back up the little hill to our road.  As I did so, the wind whispered in the tops of the trees, and I had to pause and look back at the beautiful sun, not really wanting to go back to the veil of trees shutting out its light.  In fact, I couldn't resist two more rounds of the walk, coming back to this point with the sunlight at a different angle each time, pushing back the clouds gradually for a brilliant finale before disappearing into the west.  How I love moments like this!  What a wonderful God we serve, that He should give us these glimpses of His glory.  Truly, "the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork."