LOVING THE SIMPLE LIFE

                           A HEART FULL OF GRATITUDE

Maybe this happens to you.  You just wake up and know that it's a special day.  Not necessarily a day in which something special happens, but a special day nonetheless.  As a short cut, for those of you who understand, I'm going to call it a day in which you experience God's grace.  You didn't ask for it--that's what grace is--it's given.

This morning I woke up before six.  Now that's very unusual for me. I would probably sleep until nine every day if given the opportunity.  But I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep, so I went into the den to watch the sun rise.  It wasn't a spectacular one, but the morning was cool (in the low 50s to be exact), the dew was heavy, and the sky was almost clear.  I sat for a while drinking coffee and watching the streaks of light in the east.  I felt a sense of peace and contentment that is not uncommon for me as I'm observing nature. 

Later in the morning, I sat on the porch and watched birds for a while.  This also gives me a sense of serenity that other people may find in a church pew, but I again sensed the wonder of nature and the awesome power that created this world I gazed at.

Carol and I went for a walk around the neighborhood, all the while commenting on how spectacular the air felt.  I know it's supposed to be unseasonably cool right now, but it reminded us of the end of the way September feels in Baton Rouge.  You know what I mean...a hint of fall in the air and a promise that the oppressive heat of summer is over.  We noticed that a few of the plants are beginning to turn in anticipation of fall.  What a treat that will be!!  Fall in the Blue Ridge, from the first falling leaf  to the onset of winter.

This life that I have been given is a great blessing, and today I am feeling, once again, such gratitude for it.  It's a simple life, boring by some people's standards, but amazingly satisfying.  The sheets on the line, the birds at the feeder, even the music on Pandora as I sit and read a magazine called Our State--all of these things emphasizing that this opportunity, at this time in my life, is something years ago I never dreamed possible.

Call it what you want.  Believe what you want.  Don't believe if you don't want.  But this is God's grace. This is God's gift.  I hope that I can continue to appreciate this gift and be worthy of it, every day, every season, every year.