Not today. At least today the Orlando evil called I-4 was not as bad as it typically is. At least not on the section that I traveled. The trip to Winter Park was an easy one.
Lunch with friends was so much fun. It always is. Love my Goldies - it is so much fun to catch up with the people who worked together to get that vision (called The Master's Academy) up and rolling. God has done great things there and it was fun and rewarding to be a part of it. Roger was instrumental in helping me to step out of my comfort zone all those years ago.
He kept encouraging me : Sure, change your school drive from 15 minutes to almost 60 - one way. Five days a week. We won't be on the east side of Orlando long! How many times we called that adventure "going to Egypt." We surely spent a lot of time - and toll quarters - getting children through school. So worth it though. And the school eventually moved more to the east side - Oviedo - and I drove it for 25 years. Sometimes you just don't count the cost. You count the blessings.
In all of that 'stepping out of my comfort zone' God continued to bless. My world grew larger and I met people that I never would have met otherwise. Back in the early days, when the school really had no money, we shoveled mulch, cleaned restrooms, mopped floors - all after hours and on weekends. We worked together and we played together and we prayed a whole lot. It is the thing that makes for remarkable friendships. Teachers, students, families.
Today we shared memories of a precious young student. If we ever thought we had difficulties in life, we were wrong, because we could get around easily. This young man, even with great physical challenges and surgery after surgery had to be among the most joyful students that I have ever met. We found out yesterday that he was safe in the arms of Jesus. It seemed to be unexpected and he was still so young - we were guessing, maybe 32. So tonight I am thinking so much of his young, precious wife and young child. I know that God will comfort them and provide for them, but even that does not diminish the loss and the pain. How wonderful that he is remembered most for his joyful heart - that joy, found in Christ, despite his trials in this life.
As I drove home after lunch, wouldn't you know that the magnetic field at the Krispy Kreme just drew my car in. Rightfully so, I suppose, because what firefighter (or police officer) does anyone know who does not love donuts....and I was in a firefighter's car, after all! I did my civic duty and invested in donuts for the family. OK. I ate one - even after the donut lady told me that KK uses three - count them....THREE KINDS OF SUGAR in their glaze. Goodness, no wonder it feels like a sugar injection to the veins! That must be how I missed every turn that I needed to take to get on the 'big highway." Serious and instant brain fog!
So, there I was drifting through Thornton Park and Pill Hill. And this is where I was really missing Roger. He knew every street name in "Old Historic Orlando" - every intersection, every location of every fire hydrant, and which direction the streets ran. He would take the strangest shortcuts - I think he just liked the brick roads! And he had great stories about so many of those historic homes.
Needless to say, I found the driving part so difficult today. It is really hard to stay in your lane when you are looking side to side and taking in the beauty of the area. For 41+ years, I have been the passenger when driving through Historic Orlando and could look around to my heart's content.....can't do that anymore! Oh how I wish that I had made Roger do that walking / photo tour of those great locations. I want to remember his stories! Every story involved people.
The journey home today was longer than I had planned, and yet the time spent in Historic Orlando was shorter than I would have enjoyed. That's kind of like life, I suppose. Some of us are here longer than we expect to be - I certainly am. Some have a shorter journey, for various reasons, some of which make no rational sense to us.
As I entered town, realizing that it was mid afternoon and oh so hot, I found myself glancing along the sidewalk, looking for Roger I suppose. This was the time of day when he liked to run. And he had such a habit of doing it when it was the heat of the day. Today's heat index was 103. He would have been out. He would have waved to people. People would have stopped to ask if he was ok or needed a ride home - he just had that kind of running posture that made it look like he was working so hard to run. (The way I FEEL, if I run!) And then I found myself at the corner of First and Main - stopped cold, in the middle of the street. In the same place where our angel (Susan) stopped that day. Just frozen - and it all came rushing back. You think you have it all together, and then there it comes again. It is just so unreal. Still.
Roger's Lesson: I know he would tell me that the place that Jacob called a portal - where he stepped from this life into the next - needs to be a constant reminder to us of how our time here is limited. Whether it is long or short, it is limited, and if we are smart, we will live as if it is going to be short - and use the time wisely. He would also tell me to stay focused on the road and not roam all over the place.
And then the gripping around my heart loosened up a little bit as this song came on the radio - and I realized, as tears ran down my cheeks, that I had heard the song several times throughout the day. It is called Blessings.
And I thanked God for the blessings in my life. Roger - for waiting to fall in love until I grew up. Friends - who had a vision and worked to see it come to be creating valued friendships along the way. Young people - who have such great futures but will only find true joy when they find it in Christ, as young Brandon did.
And for the tears. Because when I think too much, and the tears roll, they always bring me back to blessings.
"BLESSINGS" by Laura Story
The chorus runs like a loop in my head - and heart
What if your blessings come through raindrops?
What if your healing comes through tears?
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near?
What if trials of this life - are your mercies in disquise?
It gives a whole new perspective to tears - and the journey called life on earth.
No comments:
Post a Comment