Driving with my eyes open
I am
prepared for my first trip of the year.
At 8:18 this morning, I am strapping into my car and heading out on a
highway so familiar, I could probably narrate the drive with my eyes
closed.
In
fact, in a way, it is so familiar that I don’t see it any more. In my life of frequent travel, roads are
simply an annoyingly slow connection between two points. They are to be tolerated with digital sermons
and podcasts. There is none of the
romance of this snipped from a C.S. Lewis poem:
And the call of the roads is
upon me, a desire in my spirit has grown
To wander forth in the highways, ‘twixt earth and sky alone,
And seek for the lands no foot has trod and the seas no sail has known
To wander forth in the highways, ‘twixt earth and sky alone,
And seek for the lands no foot has trod and the seas no sail has known
But
today, I am determined to find something of that spirit of adventure – perhaps
not to find a new land, but at least a new sight on my all-too-familiar drive.
It
takes nearly forty minutes. By the time
I am able to get out to photograph the nearly ten-foot tall grasses along the
side of the highway, the dramatic low sun behind them had slunk behind clouds. No matter. I am happy with the discovery.
Noticing
is hard work. It’s a muscle in the brain
that needs to be trained. God’s people
should never be somnambulists.
You, Lord,
delight in filling your creation with remarkable things. Make me expectant of your small wonders. There are a thousand around me right now if I
could just sift them from what I find familiar.
Thank you for giving us such a world.
Bruce - No doubt you were traveling south on Route 15 (river on the left and "stuff" on the right). Is that the frozen river in the background of the picture of the tall grass? I too have a drive that is very familiar and can be a labor. I have learned to enjoy the river change almost daily, the fields change from season to season, and have worked to find little images on my travel. At the right times it is the sunrise or the sights of the trees branches with the sky in the background. There is no doubt though that if we don't focus on seeing, we simply arrive at our destination having had time pass in between. - Mike
ReplyDeleteMike, thanks for commenting! And yes, you have the highway right. It is the frozen river in the background. I love that drive, but only the river is scenic. So much man-made ugliness! It was hard to find something delightful.
DeleteI'm glad you have learned to enjoy the smaller details of your daily drive. Each one of those -- sky peaking through branches, for instance -- is such a gift from God.