the pond

It was a busy day at the pond.

A robin entertained me for several minutes by flying back and forth from the tree in front of me to the pond on my right. And when I say back and forth, I mean back and forth. As in over and over again.

It would fly a foot or two off the ground in a straight line to the pond. Then, a minute or two later, it would return the same way it came. Only now it would have a piece of grass or a twig in its beak.

Yep. It’s nest-building time.

Getting dizzy from all the back and forth, I walked over to the pond where I spotted a huge snapping turtle. Being the big kid that I am, I picked up a small branch and reached out and tapped it on the shell a few times.

I now had its full attention.

The snapper prepared to defend itself by raising its tail and backside in the air and crouching down in the front, its jaws preparing to snip my fingers off if I get too close.

Knowing that it would snap if provoked again, I gently waved the branch in front of it and, sure enough, the turtle lurched forward with its mouth wide open. An air ball all the way.

I knew it was coming—I mean, I knew it was coming, but I still nearly jumped out of my tennies. This guy meant business.

Now a little shaken up, I decided to back away and leave it alone. As I turned around to make my escape, a squirrel stood on its hind legs next to a tree.

Staring at me. I stared back.

We didn’t have to speak—I knew what the squirrel was thinking: “What kind of idiot are you, messing around with a snapping turtle?!”

Being the gentleman that I am, I decided not to respond and merely kept on walking.

Meanwhile, the robin diligently continued its construction project, the snapper stewed quietly as it returned to the safety of the pond, and the squirrel shook its head in disbelief at the dumb human.

That would be me.

squirrel!

I looked up to see it on a branch just above my head. We stared at one another for the longest time, but the squirrel finally decided to move on and brushed some snow into my face.

I laughed until it happened again and again and again. Each time it happened the squirrel would re-position itself on a new branch, look down to see me still staring at it, and then brush some snow my way.

Maybe I’m crazy, but I think it did it on purpose. I kept watching as it crawled up the side of the tree and then it occurred to me: Hey, if this thing’s smart enough to brush snow on me, maybe it’s smart enough to, well, you know, drop something else on me. All I could see was its backside. So I quickly backed away from the tree and moved on.

A short walk down the path I came across several other squirrels playing in a big tree. And, once again, found myself in a staring contest. This time, though, we were just a few feet apart and literally eye-to-eye.

"Squirrel!"

It looked so cute staring back at me, that is until I sensed it was going to leap onto my face. Ever seen the squirrel scene in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation? If so, you know the kind of fear I’m talking about.

At that moment I changed my mind about squirrels: They aren’t cute, they’re disease-ridden rats with fluffy tails.

What’s the point of all this squirrel stuff?  Just this: I enjoyed my walk in the park today. That’s a big deal because it’s been a long time since I’ve enjoyed myself so much.

The wind was cold but still welcome, and the snow deep but really beautiful. For the first time in weeks I appreciated every little thing nature could offer. And yes, even the human-hating squirrels.

The Lord knew I was yearning to enjoy the simple things in life, and He came through in a big way.

What about you? Are you enjoying the simple things in life or is stress, depression and discouragement controlling your mood?

As I’ve discovered firsthand, sometimes there’s not much we can do to improve our situations. We can pray and try our best to improve our lot, but sometimes things just have to run their course. It stinks, but welcome to life here on earth.

If that describes you, I pray the Lord gives you the grace to ride out the storm.

On the other hand, sometimes we just need to slow down and make a more concerted effort to squeeze the joy out of our circumstances.

Have you tried that? Have you stopped to meditate on your blessings? Have you tried breaking out of your routine? Have you tried doing things that typically bring you joy?

Maybe, just maybe, the Lord will give you the same gift that He gave me today: The gift of enjoying the simple and routine things in life. The gift of joy.

“Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him-for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work-this is a gift of God. He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.”1

Heavenly Father, I pray that you give the gift of joy and satisfaction to those who read this blog entry. Please enable them to accept their lot in life and be happy in their work. Show us your glory by occupying them with gladness of heart all the days of their lives.

I pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.

1  Ecclesiastes 5:18-20