I frequently complain of winter. I hate the way the bitter wind blows into my eyes, producing tears that freeze as soon as they fall, leaving me looking like a Precious Moments figurine. I hate the snow and how it turns brown so quickly in this city, reminding me of the toxins I breathe in when I go out for some "fresh air." I hate the way the road gets covered in ice and noisy trucks drive by outside my window in the middle of the night to put salt on the road which will only ruin my favorite suede shoes or my new leather boots.
I hate winter.
But I love fall.
I love the smell of bonfires and potpourri. I love to walk through the city's version of a pumpkin patch where small pumpkin shaped gourds are placed in the zoo and city children pretend to "pick them" from the garden. I love pumpkin spice lattes and warm apple pie enjoyed with good friends, reminiscing about childhood memories of jumping in piles of leaves and making turkeys out of our handprints.
I think God loves fall as much as I do.
Yet I was told on Sunday, that for theological reasons, I should hate fall and winter and love only spring and summer, for autumn is when things die and as Christians we cherish life and not death. I quieted my mouth but my thoughts did not follow and I wondered why I loved watching leaves die and fall off trees, or why I love the fake pumpkins in the park.
Today, I saw a squirrel gleefully run around a tree, hopping from acorn to acorn, taking in his fall abundance. I watched him ignore the students who passed by, seeing him enjoy his bounty as he prepared for his winter rest.
And then it struck me. Fall and winter are not so much about death as they are about rest. For a few months a year, God quiets the earth and tells it to simply be. The trees do not need to bud, the flowers do not need to bloom, the animals can fall asleep.
And I wonder when we started seeing death in what is truly rest, wondered when we decided that not doing something was bad, when we decided that we were made to always move, to always bloom, to always do.
So today, as the leaves start to turn and the apples are being picked, I am stopping and resting, knowing God has always ordered rest.
Death to us is after all only falling asleep.
ReplyDeleteI really like this. One, because I share in your hatred of winter. Two, because we fear death so much and I think that is why we see it as a bad thing; but rest, sleep, even death, do not need to be feared for those who know God.