Raking Leaves

Today after church, I had one of those movie-moments, when nostalgia, symbolism (cheesy as it may be), emotion and all that good stuff come together in a single event in time...

I was raking the leaves that gathered on my front lawn after lunch. I love Fall because of the crispiness of the air, the smell of leaves, grass and the outdoors and just the breathtaking colours of the trees. It never fails to stop me in my tracks to enjoy; and to give thanks to God for making things so pretty. There's a maple tree outside my house that has been there since we moved into our home in 1981. As I was raking the leaves, I remembered that Sunny B, my friend whom I've grown up with since kindergarden and who lives across the street from me, used to play the "10-20" game. We used to stand on top of the 1 foot tall cable box and try to jump off to touch a branch. Each branch had designated points, depending on how far it was from the cable box. The points would start at 10..then 20...we weren't ingenious marketers back in Grade 2. It was fun..Sunny and I did a lot of things together when we grew up; we tried to play "Clue" together - 2 person Clue is quite hard to pull off. Funny how time passes you by - the maple tree has grown now that the branches that used to be 10 points are now probably 40-point branches. Even the cable box has grown - it's now 4 feet tall instead of 1.

Sunny now teaches Science in highschool and sometimes, along side some of our old teachers. As I was thinking of the 10-20 game, she pulled up to her driveway! So we chatted and caught up because sadly, even though she lives across the street, we rarely see each other. She had news to tell me! Engaged! August! Wow! I was sooo happy for her! It took me by such surprise that I couldn't stop hugging her and for once, I felt tears of joy almost forming! This is great news! Sunny's a great girl and she's a picky one - so to know that she was engaged, he must be a good guy. Next August - she's getting married - that's when we're planning to move from our place. And her parents were thinking of moving too, since her brother will be moving out too. We're all moving - out and onward. W'e're two of the last three families on this street that were original owners.

I must be watching too many movies, but I couldn't help notice the setting of it all: a sunny sunday afternoon on a crispy fall day, as I was reminiscing the fun we had playing on the maple tree, of which leaves Iwas raking, I learn of new beginnings and changes and the passing by of old things and eras, just like the changing colours of the leaves. Then I reminded myself - we are kids no more, and continued on with raking the leaves.

Diss of the Week?

Well I'm not sure if it's a diss or not - mainly because I don't know how to take it...ever since I left my old place, I've had a lot of people - (old co-workers; friends who haven't seen me in a while) tell me that "I look healthy"...at least 8 times! So it's like a compliment right? But it's a double-edged sword. It must mean that I looked like a hobbling corpse, something out of the Dawn of the Dead, or at least malnutritioned, sickly, green, germ-infested, zombie-like and 'past-her-bloom' (as Jane Austen would put it) for the duration of my tenure at the old place - so something no shorter than 5 years....about 1/5th of my life. Alas, I AM Josie-Grosie!

Keeping Watch

Various news of late have put the end times in my mind. I find not too many Christians like to talk about the end times with exception to the years leading up to Y2K and the popular buzz about Tim LaHaye's Left Behind series...probably because non-Christians and friends will be all weirded out and that those talking of these things will be thought of as crazy apocalyptic religious fanatics....Or maybe cuz it's freaky to think that this is a possibility - because all - Christians and non-Christians alike will suffer (even more than now), and there will be much pain. Funny though, I have the same feelings, even though as a Christian, the end times will lead to the beginning of a time when Christ conquering Satan forever; when evil, sin is vanquished. Sometimes I find I'm too cynical to believe that it will come.

Jesus disciples in the 1st century thought that it was going to come during that time; they lived and followed without any procrastination; as if each day were their last before they met God. The signs of the end times were there, in the first century.....and I can't help not see the very things Jesus tells us to look for existing today.

Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call attention to its buildings. "Do you see all these things?" he asked. "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down." As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ, and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains. "Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (Matt 24:1-14)

And then the news - nations rise against nations - Iran, Bosnia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iraq, Sudan; and on persecution of all sorts on followers of Christ, on earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes and floods in the Caribbean, on sickness and death that's so close to home..."these are the beginnings of birth pains"...well it's not like it has never been here. But it doesn't extinguish the question - would I be ready for it if it was tomorrow? Have I lived out my faith as God willed it, or have I been procrastinating for a day that may not exist? The popular saying 'live every day as if it were last'...although normally that's the ticket to go wild and live out all the 'pleasures' of life; but this puts such a different spin on it..

Oh and then there's always these little articles (Human radio frequency chip implants) that always make me think - hmmm, could this be the mark?? (Revelations 13:16)...hahahaha - call me a little paranoid, but you know, it never hurts to wonder; to keep alert, to keep watch.

"Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man." (Luke 21:34-35)

Accused Kenyan Robbers break out of prison by singing hymns and disturb cell mates by preaching the gospel...yet none of the officials heard them singing...weird..

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=6395615

- cost of getting a boost because I left my lights on while hiking in Kelso park: $42.50
- cost of UW parking ticket for parking outside SLC to get a Timmy Ho's: $25.00

- cost of experiencing God's great surroundings in solitude and seeing Jasy, Joanna and Kat: priceless!