We Paint Pottery Together

She is the artistic one.

We paint pottery together. It is her birthday choice. 

It is a special outing for us.  We celebrate the middle one – tenderhearted, merciful, insightful, almost ethereal.  She is lovely.

They choose different pieces.  We are different.  The athlete. The artist. The musician.  Their mother.  We come together to celebrate life, live life, love each other. 

One a bowl, one a container, and two of us pick plates. Squirting paint on round palates, we envision our design.  We dip brushes and begin. We aim to create. 

I watch the birthday girl and her sisters.  They look in to their project, past the plain outside in to what it will be. I wonder what they are thinking about, how God is is moving in them as they create; how He is moving in them as He creates their lives.

I wonder at their abilities – His abilities. It is peaceful.  We talk occasionally, about memories, questions they have, silly things, some serious things, too.

With eyes squinted and licking lips, one stands over her piece of work, intent.  The other perches on the end of her chair -- closer, closer -- drawing herself in to her masterpiece.  The third sits quietly, in her teen years. 

Where did the time go? 

I want to reach out and catch time in my hands and not let it go. I linger in this moment.

We finish and walk out together, comfortable with each other, comfortable with ourselves. We talk about our dishes, what they will look like once they are fired, how the colors will emerge, deep and yet bright.

I marvel again at how God created them – the athlete, the artist and the musician – the sisters – deep and yet bright -- and I sigh.

Being Still in Stillness

On a whim, we headed out of town this weekend for a short break as a family, marking the end of the summer.  With bikes strapped on top of and behind our car (this is what happens when there are seven people in your family), we drove over to the western side of Wisconsin, spent the night and then spent the day biking along the Great River State Trail.  It was a beautiful day.  We packed a simple lunch and picnicked along the way, enjoying the scenery and enjoying each other.
  

The air was crisp like an apple, and yet dry like a corn stalk. It smelled of withering grass and sunbeams.  The trees rustled in response to the lightly blowing breeze. Leaves scampered across the bike path. And the further I went down the path, the more I could hear the sounds of fall descend around me.  It was lovely.

It was one of those rare times when all was quiet in my heart, in my mind and in my surroundings. 

As I rode along, I thought of the stillness.  I thought of the Lord and the verse, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10) floated in to my mind. Strangely, I had not thought of it before in times of solitude or peace. I had recited it a thousand times at least, I am most certain, during dark and difficult days, but not on lovely, serene ones.  Somehow, this was new.

And I realized that even in the quiet times of life (as rare as they seem to be), God calls for me to be still – to be aware – and to know that He is God. He does not desire for me toonly be a “stormy day friend,” but a fair weather friend, in every good sense of the phrase. He desires for me to remember that He is God, not only when life is full of heartaches and tensions that drive me to Him, but when all seems quiet and serene – here too He wants me to be aware of His presence, to desire Him, to spend time with Him.

It can be the challenge for me. I cling to Him for dear life when I know that I have nothing else to cling to, when my face is wet with tears, my heart is breaking, my muscles ache from straining, but do I loosen my grip when all is well and get busy, filling the space with distractions -- diversions from seeking Him?

I hope not, but I fear I do. It was a reminder to me, that in the stillness, God desires for me to be still in Him, knowing Who He is by spending time with Him and enjoying His presence, wherever and whenever that may be.

Yes, it is true, He reveals Himself to us in His pain, in our loneliness, in our sorrow, in our losses, but He also reveals Himself in the still moments of our lives. These quiet times, can be sweet times with Him, where we walk (or ride) with an awareness of Him, feeling the breeze of His breath, hearing the rustle of His voice, smelling the sweet aroma of His love and seeing that He indeed  is good and that He is God – all the time.

Learning to Enjoy God

We walked 3 blocks to the Jewel grocery store every day. We played Yahtzee, ate lunch on T.V. trays in the T.V. room (a bedroom that had been converted into a family living space), and went to the beauty parlor together, where she had her hair done once a week. We went to the Moose and saw her friends, where I was the “guest of honor.” She gave me small prizes (AKA junk) that she won at bingo and other games. I ate Brach’s candy with her in the car. She always made me peanut butter and honey on toast before I went to bed. She said funny, ordinary things that would make me laugh. I went to Marshall Fields with her to get a new slip and pantyhose (how’s that for an “old” word?). She rubbed my back at night; always called me “Dolly” and let me be me. I loved my grandma.

When I was a girl, I was crazy about my grandma. Every summer, I would go to spend one week with her and my grandpa. When I was with them, I felt special and like a priority. It’s not that they did anything extravagant (other than occasionally going to a Chicago Cubs or White Sox game – which was pretty special) but I loved being with them and we were very close, particularly my grandma and I. I miss her.

The thing about my grandma is that she was very present with me in and out of the activities of daily living. She listened to me, engaged in conversation with me and held me. I loved that about her and I enjoyed being with her. This challenges me to reflect on my relationship with the Lord. He is ever present (even more so than she could have ever been). He listens to me, speaks to me, and holds me. He is always available and never out of reach and He desires for us to be present with Him, as well -- to speak to Him, listen to Him, spend time with Him, share with Him our joys and our sorrows, and enjoy Him.

I want to be more aware of enjoying God. I want to enjoy him in the moments of each day. Enjoy His grace and great love for me. Enjoy the intricate and immense dimensions of His personality. They do not have to be big “over the top” experiences, just living life together. It makes for a relationship, a deep, never leaving, always abiding type of relationship.

Dear reader, you are a priority to God and He desires to be a priority to you. Take time in the little and big things of each day to acknowledge His presence and His love and affirm your love for Him. I learned from my grandma that it is in the little things that we are given opportunities to love and be loved. Make a conscious effort to grow in your relationship with the Lord in this way, as well. Enjoy Him!