The Thing About June

We all sort of dread this time of year in this town. The temperatures rise and we realize that no matter what we do, we are in for it - cars so hot you can barely touch the steering wheel, pavement that causes burns to your feet, days on end when you do nothing but sweat, and the impending knowledge that you must rearrange your life to stay indoors as much as possible. Well, that is, unless you are in a swimming pool - and even that is best when the searing sun has gone down.

Yet, there are surprises everywhere you look. The sage says, "I care not!" as it brandishes its new crop of little purple flowers. The Mexican bird of paradise says, "Bring it on!" as it holds high its bright red-orange beauty. The fountain grass says, "What heat?" as it sets forth its fluffy kitten tails for you to touch.

But the best of all - the thing that makes me smile - is watching the giant green ladies of the desert don their extravagant flowered hats as they say to the sun, "Finally!"

A Rock In Your Pocket

Sometimes a friendship can be like a smooth stone you like to keep in your pocket. You hold it, enjoying the coolness and the easy way it fits your hand.

You turn it over and over, looking for flaws, the ridges of your fingerprints searching out an imperfection. Instead, you are surprised by the depth of its beauty, painted - how long ago? - by the Hands of God.

You lift your hand, test the weight, and you realize how easily it could be a weapon. But you smile when you understand why people use stones for paper weights - so all your important stuff doesn't fly away.

And In Comes Peace

There was a wind blowing today through the city. Warm and strong, it took my breath away. It was not a menacing wind. Not one that brings storms and hail and frightening darkness. But one that instead brings change. It was one that pulls you out of where you are, forcing your face upward to the sky.

It was a wind that awakens and fills us.

When the Lord takes away our pain, He does so by changing us. Our surroundings are the same, our situations still familiar. But we are changed by His power. Thankfully it is not our own, for I know it would not last if it was my power.

As we look upward, our eyesight is changed. We see through a different lens, the focus tightened in on the only One who can save us, comfort us, change us. If we will allow Him, He fills the spot of pain with peace, with healing and even – unbelievably – even with joy.

Sometimes Pain Can Be A Companion

A loss, however great or small, is often replaced by a pang you carry around. You become familiar with it and sometimes, just feeling that sting can make you feel not quite so lonely, not quite so bereft. You turn to it and just the act of feeling it makes your loss a little less.

But one day you wish it to be gone. You don’t want to feel that pain any longer. You pray for the Lord to take it from you. And yet, there is a little fear there. Will my loss be complete if I no longer feel the pain? Is that the end?

And you can’t imagine that you could hold your memories without the pain there, stabbing you in your chest. You see evidence in the people around you – there they are, remembering and not crying, talking and laughing without holding a hand to their heart where it hurts so badly.

And so you cross that threshold, to see if it can be. Laughter without pain, fondness without sorrow. Yes, perhaps it will come true on this slippery strand that we call time.

You open your hands full of glitter and tears and let them go, watching to see where they will fall.