THE SHENANIGANS OF LIFE
Winter has come somewhat early to the southern tip of Africa this year. The wet and the cold, along with early nightfall, has triggered the hibernation instinct. On the other side of the world, the early morning chirping of birds awakens thoughts of long summer days ahead. I am filled with wonder at how connected us humans are to the rhythms of our planet – almost as if we are made for it, and it for us.
Seasons and time are part of our human experience. We live our lives in a linear time frame - from beginning to end, as well as in a circular pattern, repeating time, over and over again. This has been so from … the beginning of time. We are told in the ancient book of Ecclesiastes that there is a time for every season of life.
I have often wondered why? Is there a reason for day into night and night into day? For cold seasons into warm and back again? Why the repetition, the cycle?
One of the first things I was encouraged to do as a new mother was to get my babies into a rhythm. Feeding, sleeping, playing, the all-important “tummy time”, and repeat. Even as they grew, a daily rhythm brought calm and peace – as much as is possible with young, energizer bunnies in the home.
Perhaps, in the rhythms and repeats, God gives us opportunities to learn and to grow.
Certainly, the seasons have provided me with plenty of learning when it comes to gardening.
I once had a flourishing vegetable garden. The first year, I planted Zucchini, which I love. They grew and thrived. The problem was that I planted too many. Zucchinis grow from finger size to foot size almost overnight. I could not harvest them fast enough and friends and neighbors started avoiding me as I tried to hand out baskets of squash every day. I learned my lesson, for sure. The next season I planted only one Zucchini plant and I could cope.
I have learned similar lessons in relationships, in finances, in cooking, in life. When I have been over-eager, I have learned to hold back. When I muddled and fuddled my finances, I learned to budget, to save, to invest. When I burned the dinner, I learned to keep an eye on the stove. Each time I survived my mistakes, I grew stronger and more able to face the cycle of life’s shenanigans with a bit more understanding.
Life offers us many do-overs, if we are willing to humble ourselves and learn. Some missteps break our heart and are more difficult to repair than others. Those lessons are hard. In them we learn that life brings times to weep and times to mourn, times to be silent and times to heal. But this too, shall pass.
The season inevitably turns and joy returns in a new morning. God gives us another day, another opportunity to grow and to become who he wants us to be.
Perhaps, the seasons of life are not so much about what we do, but who we are becoming.
And so it should be.
May we think on these things!