Finding the wonder in the world......

Is there anything better than watching a two year old explore the world?  Yesterday I watched Anna taking in the (sort of) spring weather as I played outside with the girls while Gwen and Zeke were at school.  She loves dandelions!  Of course, they are flowers to her and she picked them over and over.  On our walk to the park we found pine cones and flowers and birds and all sorts of amazing other things for an adventurous two year old to examine.  Anna is at an interesting stage right now.  She talks in long, very detailed sentences and expects that you know exactly what she is talking about.  The only problem is that this grandma doesn't have the gift of translation of two year old speak!  At times I can figure out exactly what she is talking about.  But more often than not, she gets understandably frustrated at me and would come and take my hand and lead me to exactly what she wanted.   And then, of course, I figured out exactly what she was saying!  Because Anna is two, you can not take your eyes off of her when she is outside (or inside either for that matter!) So my view was pretty much limited to anything that Anna was doing.  But here is the thing, I love that she is helping me to translate the wonders of the world!

While sitting on the sidewalk (where Anna was very clear that I was supposed to sit) I discovered that the sun felt wonderful on my face.  There was a bit of a chilly breeze and it was only around 50, but the sun was shining brightly.   After more than a week of what seemed like endless rain, that was a welcome discovery.

After Anna brought me several different dandelions, I was looking at them closely.  I discovered that they are really quite pretty!  And each one was slightly different than the others.  Each one had a color that was not just "yellow" but was actually lots of different shades of yellow.

On our walk to the park we found several places where the sidewalk was very uneven.  Anna was fascinated with these little "steps".  She wanted to go over and over them, trying out her stair stepping skill.  She found a few little stones stuck in the crack and gave them to me to carry!  I forgot all about them and found them in my pocket after I got home.

One of the very fun things that Lia and Ellie and I discovered at the park were lots and lots of birch trees that were "shedding" their bark.  I picked up several large pieces of this bark to bring home with us.  Recently the girls have been learning about Native Americans and we talked about how they used this bark as paper.  So after it had dried out for a few hours, Ellie put some of it to use!  I'm not sure why the blog turns the photo, so you have to look at this sideways!  It is a picture of Ellie (I think she is swinging!) and she has written her name!  Thanks to this little adventure, I know I will be looking at birch trees with a bit of a different perspective.

With all that is going on out there in the media, in social media, on the news...... it is a refreshing change to find the wonder that is in the world around us.  In Psalm 19 we are reminded that all of creation reveals God to us.....

The heavens declare the glory of God, the skies proclaim the work of his hands.  Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.  They have no speech, they use no words, no sound is heard from them.  Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.

Yes, being outside on a sunny spring day can lead to feelings of great thankfulness. I am convinced that it was always the plan for the generations to be together.  I feel so fortunate to have time to be with my grandchildren every week.  It is much easier to find the glory of God through the eyes of a child.  

So spring is upon us.  Take some time to sit on the sidewalk.  Let the sun warm your face and the breezes toss your hair.  Examine a couple of flowers (or weeds) up close and be amazed at the details.  Go on a walk and don't rush and don't miss all of the wonders along the way.  You will find the wonder in the world and you will see the glory of God!

Jesus, thank you for curious two year olds, for flowers and bright sunny days.  Holy Spirit help us all to slow down and see all of the ways that your glory shows in the world.  Keep our eyes and ears open to your prompting to experience our wonderful world.  Amen