Saturday August 20 2016  OH WHAT A BEAUTIFUL MORNING

THE GIFT OF RAIN

By Kathleen Martens

August 20, 2016

 

Another night of rain,

Another refreshing breeze

Cause fragrant aroma

To wafts up and tease.

 

A gentle spirit settles,

Somber clouds lay low.

Intimacy of earth and sky

Consummate in morning glow.

 

The gift of rain,

The gift of life.

Without this wonder

So much strife.

 

Remember to be thankful

When rain falls from the sky.

Without heavens nurturing

The earth would surely die.

 

Sitting at my computer thinking of all I would like to accomplish this day and the above poem came pouring out of me (no pun intended).  Dave and I took our breakfast to the front patio and we sat on damp chairs just to be closer to the intimacy of morning.  This week the earth has been saturated with night after night of gully whoppers and gentle rains.  We didn’t quite make it through breakfast before heaven again was too burdened to carry its load. 

The beauty of morning after a rain is like a dessert to me.  I can almost taste it before I partake of it.  It is a day that causes me to relax and ruminate.  It is an excellent day for writing and watching the magic of changing light throughout the day as clouds skitter by; also a wonderful excuse for taking a nap and curling up with a good book, a justification, so to speak, for not working.  The day is still intermittently pouring forth its bountiful blessing of water over our land even as I type.  I always thank God for watering our yard.

Water is an amazing component in our lives.  Too much causes great havoc, not enough causes drought, and when we have just enough we may take it for granted.  Water is our most important recyclable commodity.  My sister lives in the San Francisco Bay area and the entire state of California is suffering with a long standing drought.  Water is being rationed, lawns cannot be watered, and there is no reprieve in the forecast.  Every time we have rain in our area my heart is so full of gratitude.  It reminds me to pray that those mountains in the west will receive lots of snow and the low lands will be blessed with rain. 

Last year when I drove through the Sierra Nevada Range, Central and Northern California Coastal Ranges as well as other ranges, the drought was so devastating that acres and acres of trees on the mountain sides had died.  Fires were, and still are, rampant.  I saw in person many of the burned and scarred areas.  That will lead to additional damage in the future due to mud-slides when the first rain falls.  I saw many of the famous Peaks in the States of Oregon and Washington and very few had any snow or icecaps left.  I crossed over a bridge on the way to Mt. Hood in Oregon that spanned a riverbed that appeared to be wider than the width of a twelve lane freeway system.  The water formed a trickling spring less than one or two feet wide, with no rushing water.  These sites were heartbreaking.

I drove alongside the Columbia River Gorge that divides the states of Oregon and Washington.  It is wide and runs mightily through the more narrow sections but I was told that its water level was dangerously low.  This is the water that flows from east to west to provide thousands with water.  After being without access to water in our home for just a few days after our well-pump died, my eyes were opened to the hardship of so many who have gone totally without, as well as those on severe rationing.  We cannot live without water.

When the rain comes, be thankful that the earth is receiving its nutrient of life.  Be thankful for the farmers who provide our food even as farming provides them a way to make a living.  In all things give thanks.  I really do believe that God blesses a grateful heart.

A poem and blog that just dropped from the sky you might say.  I had no design on what to write this morning.  So you might say, that the very thought of my topic fell right into my lap. 

I am still awaiting information to include in Uncle John’s biography so did not want to continue the series today. 

No blog tomorrow as it is my Sunday Sabbath.  I pray you have a wonderful day of worship.

 

Thank You Father for rain.

Thank You for clouds that bring the rain to us.

Thank You for our well-pump that pumps it into our home.

Thank You for a place to live.

Thank You for this computer on which I am typing.

Thank You Lord for the love You pour over me.

Thank You also for opportunity to serve You.

Thank You for the opportunity to give to another.

Thank You too for the healing that is taking place in my body.

Unending thanks for my wonderful husband.

Thank You for my glasses which improve my eyesight.

Thank You for the peace You place in my heart.

Thank You for bananas.

 

HAVE A GREAT REST OF THE DAY!

GOD BLESS YOU!

 

P.S.  A gully whopper is when the rain comes down so fast and hard that the runoff creates gullies in the ground and create rivulets in our yard.  These runoff areas can actually sweep you off your feet.