“Perhaps he has already landed.”
So proclaimed Beaver in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis.
My sister, Clissy, recalled the first part of this quote during a magical winter hike – quite Narnia-like, in fact – over Thanksgiving at my favorite place in the world which happens to be in West Virginia.
As we ascended a forest road covered in fresh powder, we arrived several times at the spot we believed to be the top, only to realize it was another “false summit.” We beckoned each other to keep going, to see what was around the next corner.
Not surprisingly, we talked the entire way – yet at one point we just stopped and basked in the stillness and the silence which truly was almost deafening- amidst evergreens laden with snow and rocks from which glistening icicles hung.
Without fail, each time we decided to press on, the path got more and more beautiful- much to our surprise and delight. Afterwards, she observed a striking metaphor for our lives.
Quite often we want to return to the known and familiar, but if we don’t keep moving forward, we may rob ourselves of all that God, I believe, has in store for us. Sometimes we need to pause along the way and listen for the whispers, pay attention to the tears, practice gratitude and awaken to wonder.
Occasionally we need just need to simply reset the GPS.
Nevertheless, we need to “keep on keepin’ on” as they say. This requires faith which Frederick Buechner defines as “not being sure where you’re going, but going anyway.” Which, of course, can be both unnerving and downright difficult.
I daresay, however, that if you want to become all you have not yet been and to experience life which is “full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy,” (Oswald Chambers) then you must…arise and go.
No mountain has ever been climbed, stream forded or desert crossed without taking the first step. Then taking the next one after that. Sometimes, it’s all you can do.
May God be with you.
– Caroline Watkins
Below is a link to last week’s blog-turned-column entitled What Do We Do Now, Now That We’re Happy?
http://theroano.wwwmi3-ss14.a2hosted.com/2013/11/26/what-do-we-do-now-now-that-were-happy/