Yesterday is was 50 degrees. Today it's supposed to snow 10-12 inches.
“Will it be the winter of despair or the spring of hope?” asked Charles Dickens. In a thousand different ways in a thousand different times I've asked that very question in my heart of hearts. I'm not alone. It even comes out in playful traditions, like Punxsutawney Phil, the erstwhile groundhog in Punxsatawney, PA, who saw his shadow this morning.
These days we stand on the precipice of seasonal change. For some, winter was harsh with its cold and snow, wet and wind. It seems like it never ends. For years, I lived in a Wyoming
Dickens continued to write of in aTale of Two Cities.
"It was the best of times, the worst of times.
It was the age of wisdom; it was the age of foolishness.It was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of lightIt was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness "
We all live in that contrast. If not personally, we certainly experience it interrelationally.
When things are going well for me, I’m often cautious about expressing my joy. Someone may be in the throes of despair and I don’t want to be only one living a party. Conversely, when darkness descends on me, I’m reticent to talk about for fear I’ll extinguish their hope.
Most of the time, I can endure my own despair, but I can’t really handle someone else’s hope.
We walk in a world of contrast, light and dark, good and bad, beautiful and ugly. The great philospher Arlo Guthrie once said, “If you don’t ever know the darkness, man, you’ll never really appreciate the light.”
That’s why the first bulbs of spring give such delight. We have seen the short, cold days of a long winter and we just don’t like it. The buds of promise push through to our hearts and warm us up to tomorrow.
Come Spring!
8 comments so far - add yours here:
I can appreciate your position, however I disagree. When things are going well, it's an opportunity to praise God before others. Likewise when darkness descends upon ones self it's an opportunity to have others pray for you. My experience is that I'm able to form tighter relationships with people when I allow them to know more intimate details about my life, what I do, what I'm experiencing, etc. I also find that when I open up and share with others they typically do the same for me and our friendship is deepened. When people greet me and ask "What's new?" I found it better to offer them an answer greater than "not much." Not that I want to blab their ears off for ten minutes, but rather to spend 30 seconds to share with them whatever is new in my life.
I especially have trouble with someone else's hope when it is in an area in which I've known much despair. I don't want to quash their light, but I do want to send a realistic dark cloud their way.
P.S. I'm in Estes right now. This Texas gal is looking forward to today's snow.
It is helpful for me to hear your position. I hadn't really thought about it from that perspective. Even in my darkest times, my heart has always had Hope. It makes me so sad to think of darkness with no light. May this new season be filled to overflowing with all good things! :)
I think of Spring as new birth. Winter is the death season for flowers and trees. It's a time to stay inside and warm. Spring shows the reality of God's ability to bring life through death. Flowers push through the cold, hard earth, and are free to bask in the sun (Son) again. I've known a lot of darkness, but the best part is finding the light. I try and share both good and bad. I'm a regular normal human. I tend to sparkle because of the Lord and am afraid of being misunderstood. Plus there are times I covet prayers! Not afraid to ask...
I'm not sure that this comment has anything to do with a spring in the heart, but it might.
We have yet to see much winter around here. That worries me for summer because the bugs will be overwhelming. So I'm dying for some snow to make sure that summer is easier. So maybe our dark seasons make the 'summer' season better. Just a thought.
Just drove through Punxsatawney last weekend (can never remember how to spell that). I think it takes a lot of wisdom and discretion to know when to share either joy or sorrow. Sometimes I get it wrong. But yes, the cold, dark of winter makes spring that much more glorious.
I will never forget the evening I walked into the band boosters' board meeting, prepared to dispatch my secretarial duties, all chipper and refreshed after a productive day.
I looked around the room and said, "Who died?"
"Mike Roper's dad," came the answer. One of our kids had lost his father in an automobile accident that very afternoon.
You'd think I'd be better at treading lightly on others' moods as a result. And sometimes, I am. But not always.
I hear you, David. I do.
.." I can endure my own despair, but I can’t really handle someone else’s hope." ...yes..
Post a Comment