Moments to treasure

Dear Sweet Savior,

I know that YOU know so much more than I know. But today I was overtaken by the thought that we (us folks still walking around the planet) just don't always see the value of a moment.  Frequently, we don't know what it meant until much later.

I think of the little girl in the school cafeteria where I work.  She's so sweet, and so proud to show me that she's eating her healthy lunch so she can grow up so big and strong. She probably thought that day a few months ago was just a regular day.  She had no way of knowing that the last time she played with her older brother would be just that.  The LAST time.  She had no way of foreseeing that he would die that day in a car accident.  That memory of their last time together has become a treasure. I pray that she'll always think of him as lively and fun.

I went to the basketball game tonight, and treasured a moment.  I watched the pep band play.  I watched these kids interacting and communing in a way only teens can.  I saw them dancing to the music they were such a vital part of creating.  In fact, I am certain that was EXACTLY what I was witnessing: a moment of Creation.  They created music and beloved memories. They form a bond that will impact them for decades to come.  They imprint images of those moments forever in their minds. They encountered YOUR love in a flash of a moment when they are all alive and healthy and fun, and the world with all its problems, slipped away.  For just a moment, it was pure love.  I will recall this moment when these children grow up and return with children of their own, or (please forbid) should one of these children die.

I guess what I'm really going on about is that I'll never know when the losses will come that turn the ordinary into a treasure.  Since I've been wearing this heart monitor, I've become grossly aware of the fact I try to ignore, which is that I am mortal, and not promised anything.  Not another minute, not another day.  So I can choose to cower and live in fear, or I can look harder at each moment, and find you there.  If I'm finding you, the moment will never really be lost. Because you are LOVE, and love makes it all matter.  

 With love, I'll be able to see the girl with the spinal weakness and the incredible clarinet skills dancing with abandon, and get totally lost in her joy in that moment. I'll be able to enjoy a laugh with friends, and feel your presence.  I'll be able to forget about me and get lost in you.  And there you are in every moment! I'll feel the sweet sadness of the little red-haired girl mourning the loss of her high school band experience with her friends.  She may not recognize you, but I know that you are the love in her heart for her friends, and you are the love she has for the music and the moments. You are everything she seeks.

My dear, sweet love. Thank you for the moments.

Love,
Me