Today was beyond rough. It began with an emotional real estate transaction where a family was selling their mother's home. Her many trinkets and clothes had been mostly dispersed, but all the sentiment and trial of remembering and honoring her life took its toll. My client and I ended up crying in the kitchen.
Then on to a visit with plucky granddaughter Annabelle and her good Mama. There's nothing so sweet as the shrieks of a grandchild when you walk in the door. I stayed too long. My hair needed washing but there wasn't time to get home before my next real estate appointment...so I did what all harried women do -- I popped in to Sally Beauty Supply and bought more stuff. I was borrowing my Daddy's car and didn't have a hairbrush with me, much less dry shampoo. Ten minutes later I emerged with a whole arsenal of products intended to produce miracles on dirty hair. I sprayed and fluffed in the Walmart parking lot, then hit the road. I ain't nothing if not adaptable.
The next three hours were spent in frazzled travail as I did the realtor two-step between a Rock and a Hard Place. I called the listing agent to give him an update on the dance lessons, but was driving distracted because my bluetooth had gone awry yesterday. I was trying to drive, talk, keep from losing my mind and balance my monster Iphone on my shoulder. When I looked up and saw the green light and people moving in the next lane, I failed to see the massive red Hummer right in front of me. Yes, it's true. I smashed my Daddy's little car right into it. The Hummer didn't get a scratch but I think the Toyota is totaled. How ironic that my Daddy taught me to drive the back roads of Powder Springs in a little red Pinto at the age of thirteen...and my first accident occurs 44 years later, driving his car.
Eventually, all the people that needed to be told and all the people that needed to get there, got there. Our son Jonathan happened to drive by and jumped out too, as a great comfort to me. I sat numbly in Ken's car as we waited for the wrecker. (I still haven't finished crying). He took me to our favorite Mexican restaurant and told me that I was not on a diet today and that I had to have comforting food and beverage. So I did, without guilt. Tomorrow's another day and it will be okay. All I could think about was how stupid I was for being distracted, why couldn't I have been driving my car instead of Daddy's and ouch, I'm starting to hurt. As we began to relax, though, I noticed the weather outside. The sky was tumultuous, with large dark clouds and rolling winds blowing. I saw a little piece of a rainbow peeking out from behind a cloud. It was different -- mostly green and orange. Over the course of an hour it grew and grew, more colors blending in -- purple, pink, blue streaks. Then another rainbow came alongside it and it all stretched from the ground, arching above the massive clouds. I couldn't help but think of all the spiritual connotations emanating from this scene. My real estate deal seemed to be unraveling, with the immovable object meeting the unstoppable force. Then the plastic car meeting the concrete one. The darkest day I've known in a long while. But then, there were rainbows...
Later, as I stood in my glorious pink pantry in our Victorian house contemplating a bandaid for my toe (another story), I finally started to break down from all the seeming failures of the day. I was feeling sorry for myself and starting to sob when I suddenly remembered that it was Maundy Thursday, the night that Christ and his disciples had their last supper together. The night that Judas went out to betray Him. The night that He washed their feet and sorrowfully began to face the great hell that yawned before Him. The dark, evil clouds mustered up to consume and defeat Him. All seemed lost on Good Friday, but then the promises of God broke through on Easter morning as He crushed the serpent's head, redeeming a people for Himself. Easter is my favorite holiday. Not Christmas, not Fourth of July. Easter, when the stone was rolled away. My favorite hymn, in its fourth verse, says: "Long my imprisoned spirit lay, fast bound in sin and nature's night; Thine eye diffused a quick'ning ray, I woke, the dungeon flamed with light; My chains fell off, my heart was free; I rose, went forth and followed Thee." (And Can It Be? - John Wesley). This life is full of all sorts of chains, with some crazy dark days. And on this very wicked day, with too many swirling problems to explain, I was given the gift of precious signs in the sky. Signs of promises given way on back to Noah, where a way of salvation was provided to carry His children to safety. Symbols and types of what was to come -- what is celebrated here at Easter. I love the bunnies, the spring flowers, the eggs and the festivities. The earth is bustin' with life and greenness. But what I love most is that God-man, Jesus Christ, who defied death and hell to pluck this girl out of the flames.
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