CHANGE CAN BE A BEAUTIFUL THING

On my recent visit to the Gulf of Mexico, of which I am very blessed to get to go often because my sister has a place close to the beach, I happened to notice a lot of changes; changes in the contour of the shoreline. As I walked, I noticed that I had to take different turns and twist, from the last time I was there. Careful to not get my tennis shoes wet as I walked a slightly different path, I saw that all the sea critters and bird life along the way continued to feel right at home. I was not the least disappointed in the view. Although there were changes, it was still as breathtakingly magnificent as always. Thinking about all the changes, I realized that the waves, currents, winds and tides had all played a  major role in sculpting this beautiful shoreline. The sand had shifted from one area to another area, once a dune, now only sand on the beach. I started to think about change and how it sometime occurred slowly and other times in a matter of minutes. The most recent hurricane, Hermine, stormed into the Gulf Coast leaving it's fury overnight. Although the shoreline was noticeably different, it was still remarkably beautiful and the ocean environment along with its habitat functioned in perfect harmony with one another.

The other day, I took my mother for an eye examination to schedule her cataract surgery.  We sat, and sat in the waiting room for two hours before finally my mother asked the receptionist, "Have you forgotten about me?" They finally called her back which took another hour or so. After finally leaving we had lunch at a nearby restaurant on the way home. As we walked into the restaurant to our table, it was very busy. We ordered and then we waited, and waited, and waited. The restaurant cleared out. The very nice waitress came to our table several times before finally telling us that she had talked to the cook and told us the reason for the long wait.  I asked mama, "Did you need a lesson in patience or did I need a lesson? We are definitely having one today. We laughed. She said, "I know I am not a patient person." Isn't it funny how even the smallest inconveniences do not go
unnoticed. They to have their purpose in our lives.

I was thinking about a recent conversation that my husband and I had with our grandson. We were in the car on the way to a football game, so we had plenty of time to talk.. He started by saying, "I need your opinion about something." I held my breath. You never know what kind of question he is going to ask. He proceeded to tell us that he just received a text from a friend at school which is a girl and she told him that she couldn't talk to him at the game because her parents were going to be there. He said, "I don't understand, we talk at school all the time." Oh my... deep breath, I looked at my husband and he looked back at me. With our eyes we asked each other, "Are you going to answer this or do
you want me to?" I prayed, Lord give us the right words.  You see, our grandson is bi-racial. He is half black and half white. So I knew, that this was one of those talks that really count. We started to explain to him what it was like to grow up in this area and what it was like during segregation. We explained that we were just separated in everything we did in life. It was just how it was and no one thought about it differently.  We told him that it was extremely hard on both races to start going to school together. Change was very difficult on everyone. We explained to him that his generation did not experience this separation.  Trying hard to not incriminate her parents, we just told him, some people see that it is important to change the way that they think and others just don't see it.  To make a long story short, we assured him that he should be proud of who he is. It wasn't about him personally. or about her. We told him not to take this out on his friend because she is only a product of her families biases and it isn't her fault. We told him that the main thing that he should be concerned about was his character because in the long run that is what people will look at, not the
color of  your skin. (Lord, please make that statement truth.)

It made me think back about 15 years ago and how I felt when I first heard that my first grandchild was going to be biracial.  It was definitely like a tidal wave hit me. Like I told my grandson about his friends parents, I am a product of my upbringing with all its biases. I had and still have many too. But, one thing I knew was my life would be drastically different. It has been. It didn't happen overnight, but my life is much richer; it is defined by a different perspective, and a new understanding, one that I could have never had before. I can now see where all races, tribes, and
religions can come together to glorify the one true God. I need my brother and sister of every color. They enrich my life in a way that only they can do.

God so often uses nature to teach me a parallel about life. Our lives like the shore, never stay the same. Change is evident, We are constantly growing and changing and adjusting to something new that crosses our paths.  It is absolute that there are going to be changes, some appear to be small "interruptions" in our day and others are life changing, altering circumstances. No matter if it's large or small there is a lesson to be learned. And how well we adjust to these events will determine the
outcome.  If we learn all that we are suppose to learn, it can be a beautiful thing. Gods handiwork in all of nature is of a magnificent design. We are part of His glorious handiwork.

We are Living Loved,

Sammie Jean

Beach Trip with sister and mom October, 2016