Somewhere North of Here

Tonight was beautiful. A storm rolled in late this afternoon, bringing dark clouds and much cooler weather. It also brought a lot of wind. Dust clouds blew across the desert and I seriously thought our house would blow away--it was creaking and the windows were vibrating. It was so exciting. The majesty of these monsoon storms leave me speechless every time. They put me in a very contemplative mood.

So I went to starbucks for some alone time. Sometimes it is just nice to get out of the house and be alone to think (and read). I got my tea and sat outside. I started the Great Divorce. So far so good, but I'm not very far. I would get distracted by all the people. I think another reason I really like to go there is to people watch. It's one of my favorite things. It's so fascinating. There was a jolly table of elderly folks with the men all smoking cigars, a young couple probably on a date, a young family with a chatter-box little boy, and a single man sitting alone drinking and just watching the sky.

It started to rain and I had to move under the roof to get away from the drops. It was SO beautiful and smelled wonderful. That distracted me for a while and I just watched the raindrops as they fell on the ground. I love seeing the cement gradually fill with drops and turn wet and dark. I read some more but then Allie and Hannah stopped by! They saw my car (the van) with the wood canoe rack on top (always a sign of the Childs family. haha). It was such a pleasant surprise to visit with them! They stayed for probably 20 minutes or so. It was wonderful. And by that time the weather was even more beautiful--nice and cool with the smell of rain.

I left shortly after they did. I drove home in the dark with the windows down and the roommate mix turned up. I listened to somewhere north, sunday morning, deeper still, and rock of ages. I would only have gotten through the first two songs but when I reached our dirt road I just kept on driving. I drove on past the houses into the valley by the wash. As I drove down the hill the temperature dropped considerably. The air cleared up and the smell of the creosote after the rain was rich. Sigh. It was beautiful. I just wanted to drive and drive...Sometimes I get in those moods. Tonight was one of them.

It is simple pleasures like these I experienced tonight that remind this weak soul that my Lord is near. They also make me think of the words "Cause out here hope remains..." from 40 acres. The whole verse goes like this,

"There's 40 acres and redemption to be found
Just along down the way
There is a place where no plow blade has turned the ground
And you will turn it over, 'cause out here hope remains
'Cause out here hope remains..."

It's easy to let the cares of the world overshadow the hope we have in Christ. We shouldn't let it, but that doesn't mean we won't have moments of weakness. I thank the Lord for filling up all that is lacking in me and being the power in my weakness. And I thank Him for simple but *real* moments like tonight...