What we have gained...COVID-19 2020
I very clearly remember the day last fall that I made an uncomfortable observation. At first I couldn't quite nail what I was feeling but it soon became clear. On a beautiful fall evening I drove to a friends house to take pictures of their family for a photo session which is something I do a lot in that season. After we finished up taking a couple of pictures in their backyard we had determined to make our way to a country club that had a gorgeous setting for some sunset photos. They asked me if I’d like to follow them and I chose to do so in my own car. It was a quiet and beautiful ten minute trip through a neighborhood that allowed for a quick detour rather than having to go around on the busier roads that would have added time to the drive.
I’ll never forget that day. As we drove through this beautiful neighborhood something started to settle on my heart but I couldn’t quite place it. It was late in the afternoon, a picturesque fall day, one of those midwest fall days that you just know is going to be one of the last before the winter starts to set in, so you soak up every moment of warmth. As I drove by these big sprawling houses and gorgeous lawns I noticed basketball hoops and trampolines, big yards and houses. The changing of the fall leaves and the beautiful feel of the sun at this time of year was palpable to the point that it necessitated me rolling down my window. It was a neighborhood I was unfamiliar with but slowly it dawned on me what was so eerie. It was the keen realization that not a child or adult was outside. Not a person was enjoying the beauty of God's creation. It was the bubbling up of a feeling of discomfort. It almost felt like a horror film.
Where were all the people? This was a busy bustling neighborhood clearly made up of families with lots of lives lived within it. Where are the kids outside? Why was nobody playing?
Why was no one riding their bikes? Or shooting hoops? Or just wasting time...
Contrast that with today. We have lost so many things and no doubt grief is such a part of our daily reality as we navigate life with Covid. We’ve lost lives and jobs and communities and relationships we depended on have shifted.
But I can’t help but think about what we’ve gained. In a one mile drive I saw so much LIFE being lived. Today as I drove through our neighborhood on my way home I saw two little girls jumping and laughing in their front yard. I saw an older couple outside planting trees. I saw a woman walking her dog. I saw a father teaching his young son how to landscape as he faithfully shoveled mulch. I chatted with my neighbors (from six feet away). As I had my run I breathed in the sun and let it rest upon face, fueled by the glory of something as simple as it's warmth.
We don't know what each day going forward will look like. There are still lives to be lost and much that we will mourn. But let us never forget what we have gained. Time. Quality time-which is God's primary love language (direct quote from Michael Havercamp). Time to breath, to rest, to live.
We have truly gained. My soul is at rest. How is it with yours?
I’ll never forget that day. As we drove through this beautiful neighborhood something started to settle on my heart but I couldn’t quite place it. It was late in the afternoon, a picturesque fall day, one of those midwest fall days that you just know is going to be one of the last before the winter starts to set in, so you soak up every moment of warmth. As I drove by these big sprawling houses and gorgeous lawns I noticed basketball hoops and trampolines, big yards and houses. The changing of the fall leaves and the beautiful feel of the sun at this time of year was palpable to the point that it necessitated me rolling down my window. It was a neighborhood I was unfamiliar with but slowly it dawned on me what was so eerie. It was the keen realization that not a child or adult was outside. Not a person was enjoying the beauty of God's creation. It was the bubbling up of a feeling of discomfort. It almost felt like a horror film.
Where were all the people? This was a busy bustling neighborhood clearly made up of families with lots of lives lived within it. Where are the kids outside? Why was nobody playing?
Why was no one riding their bikes? Or shooting hoops? Or just wasting time...
Contrast that with today. We have lost so many things and no doubt grief is such a part of our daily reality as we navigate life with Covid. We’ve lost lives and jobs and communities and relationships we depended on have shifted.
But I can’t help but think about what we’ve gained. In a one mile drive I saw so much LIFE being lived. Today as I drove through our neighborhood on my way home I saw two little girls jumping and laughing in their front yard. I saw an older couple outside planting trees. I saw a woman walking her dog. I saw a father teaching his young son how to landscape as he faithfully shoveled mulch. I chatted with my neighbors (from six feet away). As I had my run I breathed in the sun and let it rest upon face, fueled by the glory of something as simple as it's warmth.
We don't know what each day going forward will look like. There are still lives to be lost and much that we will mourn. But let us never forget what we have gained. Time. Quality time-which is God's primary love language (direct quote from Michael Havercamp). Time to breath, to rest, to live.
We have truly gained. My soul is at rest. How is it with yours?
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