Thursday, May 16, 2013

Contradictory Life...


"Here we all are...
Witnessing despair and delight 
  Tragedy and triumph
Here we all are...
Living an in-congruent and uncomfortable 
Beautiful and horrible contradictory life
Sorrowful yet rejoicing..." Tara Livesay
  
This was a blog post written by a missionary living in Haiti, working to save malnourished, dying babies every day. I feel like she has the right to feel this way, and my wildly ordinary life should never feel tragic, sorrowful or anything but normal. 

Yet, every day I see the beauty among the ashes. I see the pain in the struggle and the grace in the living. Is it weird that her words speak to our hearts? 

My daughter is off caring for her own husband and little baby. My son turns 18 in less than a week. We will no longer have "high schoolers" in a month with graduation looming, and Steve and I will likely be "empty-nesters" by autumn. The worry and the lack of control are always present. Yet the pleasure and joy their milestones bring is more so. 
"Despair and delight" all rolled into one. Thankfully rejoicing in spite of it all. 

" But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses...For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
The garden is coming to life! Beautiful... and exhausting. ;)