Redirecting Your View

Simple Life on Hacienda Hill is not so simple right now. The practical issues of composting, hanging the clothes out to dry, re-purposing items and choosing to live a lifestyle that is more harmonious with the earth is all still in place. It's the 'life' stuff that clouds my sunny horizon.

Sometimes the winds of reality are referred to as the cold hard facts, about now they seem more like the hot breath of hell. Added to the scorching heat of this record breaking summer, relief is hard to come by. There just isn't enough A/C in the world.....

But, my new friend, Terry, said something that touched me when I had to let her know how disappointed I was I had to cancel the mission trip next June. She said, "There is no reason for sadness, because He has a better plan." I'm still walking in the valley where the shadows block out the sunlight, but I hang on to Terry's words and made them my mantra because I know the day will come when I walk in sunshine again. Thank you, Terry.

As God often does, He places what you need to see right in front of you. The first written word I saw this morning was on a blog I read and it was titled 'When real Life Gets in the Way of Your Dreams'. I smiled, I knew it was Him. As I prepared to read the blog, I decided to open the curtains to let in natural light (simple life habit!). The window in my office gets blasted by the hot, west afternoon sun, so I have heavy drapes inside the outer light weight curtains to help keep the heat out. I drew the heavy drape to the left and saw that my view would be of the ugly storage shed, the burn pile we haven't been able to burn in over three years because of the ban and all the pile of junk in the 'To Be Hauled Away Someday' area. Not a pretty picture. I quickly reversed the drape to the right. It hid the ugliness and outlined the garden bed, albeit dried up. It also highlighted the life and new growth of my precious fig tree. My only thought was, "I have a choice; I can choose the ugly and worthless or I can choose that which makes my heart feel good."  Talk about a No Brainer!

I shared this little story this morning to say this...even in the worse of times, we have choices. We may not be able to control circumstances that rain down upon us like piercing sleet but we can choose how we conduct ourselves in the face of adversity and the view we decide to take. Dwelling on ugliness does not take away the ugliness. Shifting your view to that which is good doesn't take away the ugliness either, but it gives you a chance to focus on the good that exists beyond the ugliness, a chance to breathe in fresh air of hope and to remember that, as Terry said, He has a better plan.

This coming week my new granddaughter, Lily, will make her entrance into this world. The very thought of her inspires hope in my spirit. It is God's way of reminding me that I will get through the valley to the sunshine and life, as He orchestrated it, goes on.

I pray you find hope and peace in your own simple life today!