seeking shalom through wrestling well
I wake up +
the world is transformed–
tiny flakes zip by me,
pleased with themselves.
even a single little twig is
covered in layers of sugar,
not a single one has been overlooked.
how sad,
the leaves missed out on the experience–
how good,
they were spared its destruction.
the flurry of white origami,
crafted by the Maker Himself,
cares not for me–
but He obviously does.
With quiet dignity
Standing as a refuge
For those who flock to you.
You are shelter,
Security,
A place for us to
Grow.
Rooted in reality and
Reaching to the sky,
You remind me that
An acorn has to
Die
Before it can
Thrive.
-Squid
A hurricane is about to hit my house.
I usually don’t comment on current events, but this one is a little different.
A hurricane is about to hit my family.
A hurricane is about to hit my community.
—
My family moved to Florida about a year after Hurricane Charley pretty much destroyed the very town we were moving to. The town was (is?) still rebuilding.
That was the last real hurricane to cause any actual destruction. In the 10 years inbetween, we’ve had Isaac, Whilma, and maybe two others that gave us some wind and a lot of rain, but we lost, like, a shingle from each.
So, most Floridians don’t take hurricans seriously.
However, deep down inside me, I’ve always wanted to be in a life or death situation (camp doesn’t count) with my family and come through it together.
Now, as Irma barrels toward (through?) my hometown — with Jose not too far behind, I’m not even going to be there.
I’m in Ohio.
Go figure.
Today (Saturday) originally was the day that we were going to start heading home. But, you know, that tends to seem unwise when everyone is leaving the state you would be going back to.
—
I’m not sure how to feel.
On the one hand, I’m relieved not to be in the middle of 150mph winds and likely power outages.
On the other hand, my family isn’t evacuating!! My family is right in the path of a Category 4 (think, really destructive) hurricane.
I’m actually really scared for them. I want to be there, surviving with them. I want us to be a family. But here I am, powerless to anything but watch from the sidelines and, oh wait, pray!
Please join me in praying often for the survivors of Harvey who have the difficult task of rebuilding their homes and lives, and for the soon-to-be survivors of Irma who will, God willing, be picking up their own pieces.
They need our support. Let’s give it to ’em.
—
Aaaannndd I still have some memes I wasn’t able to fit into the post, soooo:
Some public safety announcements:
And the rest…
Alright guys, stay safe, and please keep Floridians in your prayers!!
-Sydney
P.S. The reason for all the memes is because (why not??) humor is often a defense against fear and/or uncomfortability. It helps me look at the bright side (we’ve got some pretty funny people out there), and helps lighten the mood a bit, even though I’m kinda freaking out.
Today, I had to make a left turn from a two-way street. There was a car coming towards me, so I quickly analyzed how fast he was goingl, how quickly he was going to reach me, and whether or not I had the time to turn before he reached me. The conclusion I came up with was, “No.”
So I waited.
As I was waiting for him to pass me, I looked at his headlights. It was overcast and sprinkly but not dark, so I didn’t lose my night vision or anything.
During this period of time, I had a very odd thought. “I wonder if the time that the light takes in reaching me affects my perception of where he is?”
Almost immediately, I realized how foolish of a question that was. Light is the fastest, well, thing! in all of creation!
Then, I realized that God had to make light travel seemingly-instantly because otherwise all of our actions would be disastrously delayed. Can you imagine driving when you had a 5 second delay between when someone did something and when you reacted? Even giving people high-fives would be a feat of the highest difficulty!
If light traveled even only at the speed of sound, the world as we know it wouldn’t work at all.
However, would we even notice, if this was how it had always been?
Food for thought, eh? 🙂
-Sydney
Although Floridians only get a partial viewing of this solar eclipse, I’m still really excited!!
As I write this, my dad and sister are in the pool (the true Floridian way to wait), and I’m monitoring the camera equipment.
Focusing on the sun is fun… *not*
I found a great blog post on the incredible design God put into our world as evidenced by perfect solar eclipses. It’s amazing!
Enjoy the eclipse, where ever you are!
-Sydney
Hey, guys!
Our family recently took a mini vacation for the weekend at a beachfront condo in a town not too far from here but far enough away to feel like far away. 🙂
While we were there, it rained. But, it didn’t just rain, it deluged the entire area for a short period of time.
This made for awesome cloud cover!! Naturally, I took pictures.
These are the lower-quality versions, so, if you want to see the high-res originals, head over to my Flickr page (link on the side widget with the pics!) and check them out!
Squid
Watching a bird;
Too far to photograph,
But it is standing still
For
Now
Should I creep up
In hopes of a better shot
But risk losing it
For-
Ever?
Sqyd
Squid's Cup of Tea 