He disappears. Never a good sign when the house is full and the heart is empty.
Children run across dirty carpets. Retriever hovers desperately, though all her needs are met.
And then, an hour later he returns. Door shut behind, where I can’t see it.
Zombie-like, my eyes stay locked on our open field….hands sunk deep in dirty dishes.
The dishwasher broke…and time keeps teaching…there is no “magic fairy” washing what we are called to be tending.
Unwarned, his gentle arm spins me around, grabbing my soapy hands, luring me away from my unenthusiastic duties. “Let me show you what I have done.”
I breathe heavy at the thought of yet another task left un-done. But listen anyway to the one whose well-worn ring encircled soapily around my finger.
Then I see it, the path in the woods he had been working on…while I was caught in the hurricane of household chores.
This man who slays the blades, takes down wild trees, and attacks thorn bushes that seek to devour this field we both envisioned our grandchildren one day playing in, was offering this work of love…
One I would have missed, if I stayed doing dishes.
And sometimes in the strangest moments, our spouse’s surprise us. Coming like superheros, fighting mundane wars spinning us around, until we are standing in the open…though earth fights tenaciously to swallow us.
And it is here, in this soapy-handed trail amid the forest…I fall in love, again.
But, I have found love to be more like cement. One minute drowning, and then somewhere along the way; between kids, and trials, and difficulties….
And on this solid foundation of love honoring, and respecting our husbands, following the self-sacrifical example of Jesus…
And grabbing my husband’s hand I say, “Thank you. It’s beautiful” instead.
For I can remember just how many times I let timber grow, stopping the light of others love from getting to my heart because I cared about appearance more than the thicket of my own heart. And how easy it can be to follow “need to’s” and “have to’s”, instead of realizing love sometimes looks like a machette’d path there in the thickness of it all.
And oh friends, what if we were tree trimmers today? Grass cutters in our marriages? Blackberry bush slayers? Would our relationships with our spouses be different? Would the light of His love shine down and widen the journeys before us?
I have risen to boast of my works, complaining, or wanting to show others what I have done…Instead of stopping my world to focus on the one that will be here when shadows come, and children are grown and gone, when our health and our hopes and our dreams are just a stroll through one long paved road cut out just for us…
Dirty dishes can wait…But a life lived focused on people, never, no never ever passes away.
What or who are you investing in today?
16 Comments
Thanks for the beautiful & inspiring post & for hosting! God bless!
Glad you could join us Laurie!
Jen, thank you for your thought-provoking post. How easy it is to get focused on all the “have-to-do’s” instead of looking at the moon or the freshly cut path! Thanks for writing and hosting. Donna
Donna – Oh ya, I hear ya sister! Those “need-to’s” tugging us away from what our hearts and souls ache for….
Jen, a most beautiful post on marriage! I am most grateful for “the cement” in my life 🙂 Blessings!
Thank you! Sometimes we miss those firm foundations in our lives and easily miss the blessings all around us! So thankful you are seeing yours, sweet friend!
Thank you so much for such a wonderful post about the path your husband made for you. Ah how the housework calls us and sometimes it is so hard to pull away when our husband wants us. We should pull away though and you found this so rewarding. Thanks for hosting today.
Judith – You sweet soul! Not sure how or why our “need-to’s” ever began to trump our “want-to’s”. But yes, may we all be drawn to our loves eternal…more than the endless tasks that seem so important in the moment! A lesson I am (and will probably forever be learning) 🙂
One of the most beautiful posts I have read in a long, long time. So blessed to have taken the time. Thank you for the reminder.
Nannette- Oh, thank you friend! I am glad you came by too!
Oh Jen…how true and how beautifully said. How many times…but I want to stop and thank God for cement and paths and love. To take soapy hands and leave the dishes. And to say thank you.
Pamela – Oh yes, why are the best things, the things we too often most miss! Here is too stepping outdoors and feeling, living, breathing in everything God has for us!
I see you found a “keeper” too, Jen. How did we both get so lucky? Great post with great reminders of God’s love, provision — and our privilege and responsibility to show gratitude. Enjoy our new path. 🙂
Susan – Oh friend, I wish I could say I have always seen the beauty in those around me, and been thankful for those little things surrounding me every moment…but I haven’t! It is only His grace and the continual prayer that God would open my eyes to see what matters most, where everything has changed! Have a great week ahead! Thanks for sharing & blessings to you and your “gift” God has given you in your husband!
Really lovely, Jen. I wish I could see that path, but I certainly could see the way it led to your heart! I must admit, I take my husband’s thoughtfulness for granted way too often. I get distracted by so many things. Thank you for the reminder to look at him and appreciate him today.
GOD BLESS!
Sharon – Oh, I think we ALL take what is most familiar for granted. We look to the grande times and moments and people who seem to radically impact our lives…when all the while, the greatest love of our lives is right here beside us! I pray for us both today, dear friend, that God would reveal the beauty in the hand that we hold, the ones closest to us today…! Always love seeing you here Sharon! Thanks for stopping by and commenting!