Assurance from Cloud Gazing
Look closely, what do you see?
I grew up in the country. To be honest, I don't recall if I have ever shared this fun fact with you before. As a child, my days were spent outside in the heat of the day reading a book in one of my three favorite places: swaying on the porch swing, laying on a blanket in the backyard up against the house, or sitting in the crooked limb of an apple tree in the orchard.
Often, I would pause my reading to gaze up at the sky and try to find shapes as the fluffy white clouds floated by. When you live in the country, the sky goes on for miles and miles before disappearing in the horizon. I miss the vast beauty of the sky now that I live in a city, but it was growing up here that made me pause for a moment on a visit back recently.
We had a family reunion. I haven't attended a family gathering in several years. Moving away from my family was a difficult decision, but one I made to start my life with Mike here. As I sat and looked around at my family, a sense of sadness swept over me as I lovingly remembered the two who started our family tree—my grandparents.
Their absence was felt, but so was their love. I wanted to remember my moment of pause on the farm and took a couple of photos to remember the day and location by. This morning, as I was looking back at all the smiling faces, the children playing, and the great food, I found myself zooming in to look at the clouds captured in this photo.
Top and center I see a heart with a woman and a man coming up out of it in the middle. Undoubtedly my mind instantly went right back to my grandparents. They were there with us that day, always looking over us and smiling down from above. This photo gave me assurance of that.
I have been honest with you all this year that this year has been extremely difficult for me. An unexpected surgery that resulted in a handicap I wasn't prepared to face has caused so much doubt, but it has also gifted me with so much clarity.
One absolute truth I know is that time is precious. Every single moment counts. Each day inches us forward in age and if we aren't careful, we may find ourselves one day filled with regrets for not doing the things we wanted to do.
The refinement God has brought me through this year has opened my eyes to new possibilities. One where I am a teacher, instead of a doer. One where I am still, instead of hustling. One where family becomes a priority, and everything else can wait.
Friend, take time out of your busy schedule to make memories that will be life-lasting. No regrets. Life life intentionally.
All my best, Shonda Ramsey