Tapestry

Tonight is my twenty year class reunion.  So somewhere in the prairie of Arkansas my classmates are celebrating.  I am here in my home, and it is a rare quiet night giving me time to think.  Erik is at a high school football game, and the kiddos are either in bed or reading in their rooms.  And, I have hot tea, soft music, my laptop, and a heart overflowing.

I like to think of our lives as being somewhat like a tapestry.  And, He weaves the suffering, the joy, the whole lot of it all together and makes something beautiful of it.  And, those flat rice fields that went on and on and on unending until they met the setting sun and cut it straight in half, they are a part of me. And, I keep thinking of the people, the faces, the voices of those who helped shape who I am and how I see the world.

I've moved on. I left that small town after graduation, and I didn't look back.  In fact my parents moved to another state a year after graduation, and I've only been back to those golden fields of rice twice since then.  I'm not the same girl I was back then.  I've seen so much, learned so much, grown so much.  Grace upon beautiful grace, step by step, He has led me to new horizons.

So, tonight my full heart is reminiscing.  And, not just about growing up in that small town, but about the journey since then, the two colleges, the way He led.  He guided my decisions, my friendships, my every step.  He led me to Erik who was more than I could have ever asked for or imagined, and I still can't believe that he chose me to spend his life with. Wow.

And, then my mind wraps itself all around the years post marriage.  Three states and lots of long runs on the beach, by the bay, and along the river...  And, then we ended up here in another small town. How ironic.  But, this small town isn't surrounded by flat farmland.  There are rolling hills and lots of trees and small fields scattered here and there.  I'm not the same girl I was back then in the early years of marriage.  I've grown and changed through marriage and 7 children in 10 years.  It has been a wild ride, not always easy, but always good.

As I've spent my evening thinking through my journey up until this point, I have been overwhelmed at His faithfulness.  We all have a journey where joy and sorrow mingle.  We all have a beautiful story crafted by our Father to bring Himself glory.  Think about yours and thank Him for it.