cloud chasing

My kids made me promise 10 years ago when we moved to Oklahoma in part of Tornado alley that I wouldn't become a storm chaser. On more that one occasion the tv storm chaser rigged up cars did pass me ...going the other way from me. But I only once skirted the outside of a tornado by accident.

Today was oh so mild. The almost completely blue sky had a few random clouds blowing across today. The road which stretches out for miles ahead of me was dotted for a moment with the cloud shadows. Every once and and a while I would drive into a shadow. Some times one would come over top the car. It felt like a game of tag. Oh yes, I was paying attention to the road, and the lamas and the cows and the horses and the red-winged blackbirds and the hawks. But I was also playing attention to the clouds.

They reminded me of how sometimes everything sunny can quickly change and there is a touch of OH MY! that comes into our lives. And it reminded me of how quickly that OH MY can go away. Also if I would have stopped in one spot and not even driven into the clouds some still would have passed over me. It happens. In life the cloudiness of the world happens. And there is no hiding. We just go thru and we are ok.

So friends. When clouds come, remember the blue sky remains above and the blue sky will appear again.

sing along..."blue skies smiling at me- nothing but blue skies do I see!"

Animals Observed

Good Thursday Morning.
The highway between Duncan and Lawton is being 'fixed' and the construction makes what was a very relaxing drive a little more exciting/ So today I drove the back way.
The time difference is nil as the construction slows all the traffic down on the main road. Yesterday a string of cars, me the third, proceeding thru the 55 mph construction area almost came to harm when the first car spotted the police car parked on the side and slammed on it's brakes, even though it was already going at or under the limit. I saw him as did the car between us and we slowed WAY down and the series of cars behind us all were able to do the same so we didn't have a real mess.

Ok, back to the animals. Today I spotted, cows, goats, lamas, hawks, great blue heron, mallards, dog, coyote, fairly freshly killed skunk, wild turkeys, turkey vulture, some kind of ducks, and a flock of starlings.

I am sure I missed something. The road is 'farm size' 1 and 1/2 lanes. Most of the 30 miles is paved but not all of it. There are two bridges with signs saying one lane narrow bridges. One of them comes on a curve which makes it really tricky, no rails just the edges falling into the creek. The second one has boards laid into the structure and if you go off them you'd be in trouble.

But it is beautiful. The trees overhang the road in several places. The farmers all wave, (that would be your fingers raised off the steering wheel), and I think
if you got in trouble someone would help. Of course they would have to find you first. I passed 5 cars the whole way. There are a lot of pretty houses along the way. Some houses are new and some abandoned.

Where is this musing leading? I remembered when I was learning to drive and my dad and I were in Northern Ohio on the farm roads. I'd been going along for a while and the sign said, "One Lane Bridge". I hit panic and started to stop and let him drive across the bridge. "Oh Bobbie," he said before I could speak "you've been driving on a One Lane road for the last 20 miles." He started to laugh.

We need now and then to stretch our spiritual route a bit and get off the common way and see what is on the side road. That is to say we need to wake up and be alert and attentive to all that is around us. To be present to this time and this moment. To let yourself smile when you see a field of young calves, or a herd of goats, or a coyote dashing across the road. To find the joy in the fresher air and the keen alertness that comes from a new path. You end up the same place and you are refreshed.

Take care and make this day unique for it is this Day you have! Send me a note of how it went for you. You can leave a comment anytime.

God abides
Bobbie Giltz McGarey
@2010

Field of Texas bluebonnets © bombay2austin on Flickr -
noncommercial use permitted with attribution / no derivative works


We moved to Texas in 1983 in December. We were surprised that the honeysuckle outside our house was blooming. We were very surprised when the Bluebonnets bloomed. Wow what a sight. We were warned not to pick them as you could be fined.

The kids were in Pre-school and when my folks came to visit we went out to see the flowers and take some photos. (as everyone does) In my photo cache at home I have a photo just like the one above.

So we were driving south of Bryan and found a pretty hillside with both Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrush and a great old fence and the blue sky. So I had the kids run part way up the hill to pose for a photo. I had told them that these were flowers to look at not to pick so that others could see them. They are standing there and a sheriff pulls up behind me. I pointed to my camera, the kids, and he smiled and gave me a thumbs up. All the while I am thinking...don't pick the flowers...don't pick the flowers... they didn't.

As I thought later of that admonition about the flowers, so others can see them, I realized that this was something that we do in our faith life. Something we could do perhaps even better than we do just now.

When I recall the bumper stickers of some years ago, "I've found it" it always seemed like it was "I've found it and you can't have it." The love of God we have received in Jesus might better be put..."I've found it let me share it with you." That overflowing overwhelming amazing love of God that we have to share.

"Go tell the others" Jesus to Mary and to you and me

God abides

Bobbie Giltz McGarey
@2010

After Easter

Wow these last few weeks have flown by. Somehow it was snow and now it's in the 80's here. But not only that Easter has passed. It was a good Easter Season, a fulfilling Holy Week, and now we are IN Eastertide.

That in-between Easter and Pentacost. For the Christian Church this part of the calendar is most exciting. True, the Lilies aren't what they were a week ago. But then, friends, neither are we. If Celebrating Easter didn't move you to know that all things are new...you have missed something.

Years ago we had a 4th grade Sunday school class draw a picture of the Easter story. I won't share all the detail but there was a cross, Jesus on the cross, a spear in his side, and a large large Easter Bunny with a basket over the top of the cross. The bunny had a balloon caption that said... SORRY! We pretty quickly realized how this child had put together all he knew of Easter and there was surely some confusion.
No the Bunny didn't kill Jesus. Legend has it that the bunny is a symbol of spring and also because the bunny was the fastest to run around the world to share the news that Jesus had Risen. (Jesus has risen indeed!).

Let's always take care when we tell the stories not to conflate them into one messy image. Here's the message I got...Jesus is not in the tomb he abides with us. And that my friends is really really Good News!

God abide

Enjoy the Spring

Bobbie Giltz McGarey
@2010