I reached the crest of the hill, got the needed repairs and I’m coasting now…… everything went great and soon I’ll be looking at it all in the rear view mirror.
There is still some maneuvering to do, a couple of tricky curves ahead, some bumps to dodge, and a few tests to put the vehicle through, but I have every confidence it will pass.
Reaching today's mile marker was a piece of cake compared to what I've already traveled, and the best parts are yet to come..... just gotta keep travelin.
I am so ready to leave it all behind…….
Another mile or few to go
Closely watching for the welcome words
"You can rest a while now, you’ve arrived".
Tomorrow brings me closer to one of the last big hills I need to get over. I will undergo the surgeon’s knife again for some leaky connection repairs, spend a few days coasting, then hopefully roll into a smoother stretch ahead for the remainder of the journey.
************
I’m reminded again to keep an eye on the positives; so today I am paying attention to the beauty along the side of the road.
I just seen a little flower peeking out from beneath a rock that partially covered his deeply buried roots. Despite the struggle he is blooming beautifully.
I noticed a couple of miles with no litter in the ditches, the haphazard arrangement of God’s natural design.
I’ve seen numerous fence posts standing strong and straight, holding tight to their markers taking up the slack for others that are leaning.
I seen the freedom of a wild animal taking care of it’s domain, insuring it’s place in the world tomorrow.
I noticed smiles on the faces of other travelers, each to his own destination with determination and bravery.
All of that and so much more……
Just little signs of the goodness of life around me and a glimmer of what it can be like if we keep steering ourselves straight.
*******************
One mile at a time……..
The teacher ask if anyone could tell her how many points there are on a compass….. Little Johnnie raised his hand and said five! The teacher said five? Why do you say five, can you name them?
Little Johnnie said “I sure can, North, South, East, West,
and…… where I am!”
<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>
Many of us would be hard pressed to argue with that simple answer, and if you include the compass point of where each of us are, the compass becomes larger than any one of us can count.
This morning I learned of the death of a friend who has finished her battle with colon cancer and came out the winner.
We know where she is, but the importance is in where it leaves her family,
including her 10-year-old son.
Earlier in the month the grandson of a life long friend was involved in a horrendous car accident which put him with a broken and bloodied body into a deep coma.
Awakening, his location is now slowly changing as he struggles to relearn
how to breathe, speak, and use his mind and limbs all over again.
I know of another who broke her ankle, another who learned her mother has breast cancer, another who is celebrating the birth of a new baby, another who is recuperating from surgery, another conquering a mountain on cancer weakened legs. And there are others, each at their own point on the compass.
Life leading us around the compass.
For each of these people, their world stopped for a few moments, and moving to a different location did not seem possible. When they brought my friend’s grandson into the trauma hospital they were told IF he lives, his recovery will be a marathon not a sprint.
Through his journey his loved ones are also becoming stronger.
For my friend who died this morning, her family, thru their memories of her courage and love
will move forward by realizing their own strength.
For my friend celebrating the birth of her baby, she will grow in ways
she could never have realized.
For my friend climbing the mountain, he will not notice the pain
nearly as much as the beauty he sees when standing at the top
They are all recipients of changing locations on the compass. For now, they are stuck with what it seems like nowhere to go. Confused and afraid and some of them happy, but still totally unrelated to the rest of the compass. This moment on this earth, their point of location is
the primary point on the compass.
If they will allow themselves to take notice,……..
“Where I am”,
will take on a whole new meaning for them….
“Where I am”
is forever etched in stone as a turning point in their lives….
<<<<<<<>>>>>>>
I reach out to dream
Of peace
Of love
Of strength
Of relief
Of silence
Of laughter
Of all those things and so much more
I reach out to see not where I have been,
But with God, I see where I am
With hope I see not how to get to where I am going
But I see where I can be.
I need to be where I am
With God at my side
My trust comes from
appreciating
where I am.
<<<<<<<>>>>>>>
