Smelling Eden

There are just some places where I can smell Eden. Most of them are outside wondering around mountain paths or on the open prairie, but occasionally one or two are inside. For me, one of those places is the Waterfall Room at Yankee Candle in Deerfield, Massachusetts. There is just something special about a 12 foot indoor waterfall coming off the side of a stone castle, complete with full knight armor standing guard at the gate. And I can't forget all the scents wafting about everywhere.

I sat on the bench and closed my eyes. The water rushes like music and the humidity is just the right temperature. There is a calmness and a stillness. It's just a wonderful place. I told Rich I want one in our next house. He just smiled. I could sit there for a week.

Then of course there is the German Christmas Village where it snows every five minutes... all year long.

Although Liz and I, along with Rich have all been to Yankee Candle before, the children had not. So when Rich suggested we stop last month on our ways to a fish and water pond show, the kids whined. "A candle store? eeeewe." By the time we left, they were asking when we could come back. I laughed and lovingly teased them.

It was wonderful to see the twinkle in the children's eyes and the delighted laugh as the "snow" fell. They danced and twirled, giggled and grinned. It was the wonder of winter in your shirtsleeves. I confess I was pretty smitten too. I hadn't seen it before either.

I'm always in awe when I think that God smiles when I delight in his creation. Imitation waterfalls are nice, but the real thing is so much better. To think that God took pains to handcraft waterfalls in nature that rival anything the design architects at Yankee Candle could only dream about dreaming up, and he did it simply for our enjoyment, I blush. That's love.

As the fall leaves start crunching under you feet, I encourage you to think about the God who redecorates four times a year. He wouldn't have to, but he chooses to. Just like we choose to love our children and enjoy their delight, he does that for us. Maybe it's time we run up to him and say, "Thank you for the wonderful time! Can we come back soon?"

Photos Copyright © 2006 Janel Messenger - Do not copy without permission.

Wonders

With four children in the family and a camera that's out all the time, you never know what you'll find when you download pictures. I've seen pictures of chairs from the oddest angles. Someone took a picture of the toilet a few years back. (Thank God they didn't drop the camera in!!)
Fingers, ears and toddler kisses, creative ways to drizzle syrup on your pancake, the ceiling and Lego creations are all fair game. The photo above, along with 6 more equally breathtaking views of the sunrise, appeared in the downloads Saturday night. Both Rich and I marveled.

Our nine year old took the photo last week. He was so proud when we asked him about it. (Even more so when we told him how much we loved it!) We've always known he's had an interest and often ends up with some good shots. I think it might even edge on talent. I need to get that boy some books on photography...

Photo Copyright © 2006 Ben Messenger - Do not copy without permission.

He said - She said

It's all about perspective, really. Honestly, I find that most things in life boil down to the way you look at something and how someone else is looking at the same thing from a completely different vantage point. You both see the same thing, but you both see it differently. Most everyone knows that men and women are famous for saying the same thing and meaning something completely different. Just this morning Rich and I had one of these little exchanges.

I was shopping for clothing online and stumbled on something way out there. It was one of those "I can't believe this!" things. I knew my mom and Liz wouldn't appreciate it. I thought Rich would at least shake his head and snicker. So I mailed him the link.

His reply? "I don’t even want to know how you came across this." With the thought of him thinking negative thoughts about me hanging in my head, I told him how innocently I stumbled upon it. His second reply: "Why is it that whenever I say 'I don’t even want to know' or something similar, you think that is an automatic 'I must answer?'"

Well, I couldn't leave that alone. He must know! "Because you'll think ill of me for coming up with something so reprehensible. I want to let you know that I wasn’t intentionally looking for anything like that. It was just so out there that I had to share."

Rich's final reply? "No, it doesn’t mean I think ill of you, it means what I say: 'I don’t even want to know'."

Ahh perspective… When a woman says she doesn't want to know, part of her really doesn't want to know. But another part of her screams that she's dying to know. She just doesn’t want to admit it. I'm trying to be better about it. We all bring our experiences to the table. That's why men and women have such trouble communicating. They don't take the other person's perspective into account.

Liz and I, as a single woman and a married woman, go rounds about our perspectives on the world and life. Liz sees things through the eyes of a single woman and I see them as married. Missionaries who have lived in countries without the luxuries we take for granted here in the US, are amazed and sometimes appalled at our selfishness. If we truly understood and experienced how the rest of the world lives, we might not feel so bad about giving up our vacation house, extra cell phone and $3 a cup coffee.

Which photo is the correct perspective? Neither. Both are of the Irish Potato Famine Memorial in Philadelphia. They are just taken from two different angles. If you notice the circles in the photo, it's the same man. The view is different. When engaging a person whose outlook is different than yours, please be sure you're looking at the same statue, from the same direction.

Now, all that said, I believe in absolute truth. Scripture is very clear about what is true. There is no room for negotiation. Just like the monument stands unchanging, so does God's word. It is our view of the monument and Scripture that changes. If we move and grow just a little bit, we see more of it, from a slightly different angle. It's not that the monument or God's word has changed, it's that we have. We come to a more full understanding and appreciation of each. I hope you'll consider that the next time you find yourself in a He said-She said situation and ask for the other person's perspective.

So what did I find this morning? You'll have to think ill of me, because I'm not telling. Have a wonderful weekend!

Photos Copyright © 2006 Janel Messenger - Do not copy without permission.

Space Junk Watchers

Apparently my room isn't the only place cluttered with stuff. According to CNN.com, NASA says we have a junkyard of things floating around the atmosphere that occasionally fall to the earth in a fiery ball and ding someone's car.

"Last July, spacewalker Piers Sellers sheepishly reported that he lost a spatula. Nicknamed 'spatsat' by space junk watchers, it returns to Earth in a fireball early next month."

Now what "flipping" amazed me is not that there is a flying pancake flipper floating around space, but that there exists such a people group called "space junk watchers"!! Who are these people? Did they O.D. on Star Trek as children? Do they wear pocket protectors? or carry Palm Pilots? Do they have greasy hair and shower infrequently? Do they get paid for watching space junk or is it just a hobby? Inquiring minds want to know!

"NASA and the Air Force track objects bigger than about 4 inches. The official "box score" of that space debris as of Thursday was 9,925. But the 90,000 objects smaller than that can be as dangerous, zipping around Earth at more than 15,000 mph. They are just harder to track."

These space junk watchers should receive our utmost respect, "as of Thursday" they at least knew where all 9,925 items 4 inch + items were... As of Thursday in my world, I can't tell you were my old camera is or when I will be able deal with 145 emails in my inbox or if I will ever clear my desks (home & work) of debris. Maybe the solution to my debris problem is to launch the junk into outer space for the space junk watchers to concern themselves with it. Perhaps I should check in with them -- maybe they have seen my camera!?

It is always amazing to me to hear of other "subcultures" as I like to call them. I entered into my own subculture when I became a rock collector. And you know I'll I have to admit I keep my rocks cataloged just like the space junk watchers!

The God of All takes on a more fuller meaning when you think of all the varying interests that each unique person has. Interests that others don't even know about yet. But God knows. I have gotta believe he gets a kick out of and takes delight in the space junk watchers and the rock collectors and perhaps even the Star Trek fans.

Ahh well its a wonder-full world out there and it takes people of all kinds with varying interests to keep it wonderful. Three cheers to the God of All who made us full of wonder and wonderful.

For more about space junk check out the link below from which I quoted: CNN Story