The wind whistles through the windows, rain pelts the window panes and temperatures fall by the minute as the cold front hurries down from the north. When I went to bed last night, gentle winds from the southeast caressed our corner of the world, stars shone brightly in the night sky. I had stepped outside just before bed to breathe deeply the comparative cool of the evening, preparing to go and sleep. And then, around 5am this morning, everything changed. I awoke to winds and rains…and to the cold air blowing through the house. I awoke refreshed, filled with anticipation at the changes rushing in upon us.
I sit now in our living room, awake and writing far too early, listening to the patter of rain as if falls on leaves and driveway. Because the winds still blow, and colder by the moment, and because we are reluctant to close up the house, I sit wearing my polartec…bringing back memories of winters in Monterrey where we could not escape the winter cold. Here, of course, we can escape the cold that rolls in…but we choose not to, enjoying the brisk and bracing morning air. We may tire of the cold soon…and then we will close it all up. But, for now, I breathe deeply the cool air…while the family snuggles more deeply in their warm beds, sheets and covers pulled warmly around them.
Life-changes too often come this way, surprising us, shocking our system, disrupting our routines, awakening us when we least expect…or least desire. Yet, it is not a bad thing. The changes of weather remind us of how little control we actually have in life…and remind us that while we cannot control happenings and circumstances, we do have something to do with how we respond. I could have snuzzled down more deeply in my bed this morning, too…but I decided, determined, to arise and write, to enjoy the quiet of the morning and the start of this new day. I do not regret my choice.
When those unexpected changes in life come, those changes that are far more impactful than mere weather, how do we respond? How do we react? Do we recoil in fear, self-doubt, uncertainty…and snuzzle-down under the covers of life? Or, do we see the changing winds as something to experience, as a moment to face with anticipation and expectation? Do the rains dampen our lives, or do we see them as feeding our future, as a necessary element for a healthy life-garden?
As I awoke around 5am, I knew that the weather had changed, the wind had changed, the temperature had changed…I knew that a cold-front was coming into our sub-tropical lives here in south Texas. But, I also knew that something more profound was moving into my own life. I felt the hints of change even last night…and the night before. Something in my own mind and heart was changing…that change was coming.
While I’m aware of the obvious changes that come with the weather, I don’t know what to expect with regard to the changes in my mind and heart that are coming. I cannot see what the changes will be in my interior life. Yet, I prepare to face the changes as I have faced this front—head-on, awake, with anticipation, with hope, welcoming the change, knowing that change will grow me, push me, move me.
Changes are coming…and it’s about time! My God is with me and is shaping me through time and experience more and more into the person I am to be. So, let’s see what new and exciting things come into this adventure of life….
1 comment:
I enjoyed reading your blog about "Changes coming"... Change sometimes is hard,even though it is necessary, and I know it is how I react to the change. We are creatures of habit, so for me I know I need to pray on this. I am going through a time in my life that I am questioning motives of others instead of letting go and giving it to God.
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