Into the Woods

Phi Mu Into the Woods. Part II- The Journey

      This past week, Claire, Scottie and I loaded up Claire’s teal SUV to head to the beach. As we threw in the final towels, ice-cream maker, art supplies, binoculars, and instant coffee (all of which are trip essentials) we crammed in and prepared ourselves for the road trip ahead. I’ve heard it said that sometimes its not the destination that is full of adventure but the journey along the way. I agree with whatever wise person said those words. They clearly must have driven highway 331 at some point in their life as well.  We passed several small towns and Scottie did not fail to point out every stray dog along the way. We had to convince her that perhaps they weren’t abandoned, just homeward bound. Its still a miracle that we made it to the bungalow without at least one dog- I swear she spotted seventeen.  The highlight of the trip for me was seeing two bison in someone’s front yard. Somehow I was the only one to see them and Claire and Scottie acted as if it was an everyday occurrence.  For the rest of the trip, anytime someone pointed out something they would respond with “Maybe it’s a bison”. No worries, on the journey home, I proved the bison were real and definitely in Alabama. We passed a stand along the road and Scottie insisted we stop and get boiled peanuts. It was definitely an experience but so good! 

As we passed through the town called Opp, the interstate was closed off by multiple police cars and we had to detour. As we passed a tractor driving in town, Scottie asked if our car sounded funny. We assured her it was just the road. Less than 2 minutes later, we heard a loud noise and it took 2.5 seconds to realize it wasn’t the road but the tire. So we pulled off into the only place we saw. Naturally, it was an abandoned building with a creepy baby painted on the side.

The tire- definitely flat. The surroundings- middle of nowhere. The three of us- a hot mess. Thankfully we had AAA and after guessing whether the bolts on the tire were standard or custom and confirming that we were in fact in Alabama not Florida, they assured us someone would come from the Exon Station in town. As we unpacked the entire contents of the car to get the spare out and then someone repacked it all, we met seven people from the town.  Each stopped and offered to help and one older woman in particular even offered to send her brother to help us.  She then told us about her upcoming trip to Disney World (She hasn’t been in 30 years and she is so excited). We assured them all along with the state trooper that help was on the way and sure enough, a few minutes later, redemption came in the form of a man named Rusty in a ford pickup. He was a man of few words but he did tell us why the interstate was closed. Apparently the cops were chasing two fugitives by car. One was shot and the other was still on the run. This was not the most comforting news to three girls stranded on the side of the road.  With the spare tire on or “donut” as Claire called, we continued the rest of the trip at a slow pace and finally made it to the state park before Ranger Fred locked the gates.

Everyday Blessings

I read a post by John Piper that talked about his lessons from great men like his Father and C.S. Lewis. One in particular was his observation that in life, they always found ways to be amazed.  They looked for the divine in everyday occurrences. By beholding the glory and beauty around them, they were no longer focused on themselves but rather had their eyes fixed on the Lord.  I want to live like this. I want to look at the people around me and instead of seeing a body with a coffee in hand, I want to recognize that they are a soul who share in the same love of a coffee shop as I do.  They are not robots but men and women like me who also bear the image of the heavenly. As I prayed for this, the Lord opened my eyes and I realized that this same Lord I often accuse of being absent or silent is found everywhere in his creation. When I look for Him, I cannot stop seeing evidence of His presence.

There’s this sweet old woman in Starbucks that I hope to be like one day. She comes in almost every day and diligently reads her bible and takes notes- occasionally glancing around smiling and talking to people near her. Tonight Laura and I watched as she knelt beside the young girl sitting near her and asked to pray for her. It truly was a beautiful moment.

The couple beside me has been going through the book of Ephesians and talking about how to apply it to their marriage and life.

Even in the unbelieving man from Belgium who asked my roommate about the gospel. Despite his unbelief that some guy on a cross could save him, God was there. In his questioning. In his search for more. The Lord knew. Unbeknownst to this man, the Lord was reconciling his heart, else he wouldn’t have stopped to ask.

As I drove to the hospital to sit with a friend, I ran into a sweet older woman in the parking garage who looked about as confused as I felt. She asked if I knew where the exit of the garage was since we were on the 4^th floor. Naturally, I pretended to know exactly how to get out and prayed the old elevator would make it without stopping. Somehow even the floor that said level 1 yielded no luck. I found a door with three levels of stairs and assured the lady this would lead to the sidewalk meanwhile apologizing repeatedly that I couldn’t find a better way. Thankfully she just laughed and said she knew she needed the exercise.  As we reached the landing, we walked the next few blocks to the hospital entrance and talked as if we were long-time friends. 

A few days ago, as I was pacing the aisles of Publix searching for almond milk and two minutes from calling my mom and asking her where it might be (because mom’s magically know the layout of every grocery store) I passed a woman.  She was in a motorized scooter and I heard the exasperation in her voice as a stream of “Sweet Lord Jesus” escaped from her breath while she struggled to stand and reach the top shelf. I walked over and asked if she needed help and with a look of mixed confusion and thankfulness she asked if I could help her find some turkey breast and pork chops. My first though Naturally, of all the people in the store, this poor woman asked a vegetarian to help her find meat. In all honesty, I do not know the difference between a pork chop and tenderloin steaks. My pride would not allow me to admit that so I spent the next several minutes showing her different meat packages and waiting for her to shake her heard or give a nod of approval. Thankfully she left the store with everything she needed and I left better educated on meat. I’d say it was a win-win.