The Silence

The sun broke through the trees in the early morning like the earth was surrendering to its light. The silence was all around as we sat there and listened. Then slowly, a chirp to the left, chattering behind us, wings overhead, a breeze softly blew across the tops of the 100-plus-year-old trees and the warm sun laid a blanket of comfort over us. My grandson and I sat on the side of a hill in the mountains two weeks ago listening to God’s creation. This little guy is anything but still and quiet. He is full of life, grand ideas, detailed questions, jumping, running, delightful intelligent conversation, creating a wanted reassurance that he is curious.

The grandkids had just spent their first time camping in a “house on wheels”. The night previous he and his sister, as well as the rest of the family, had stayed up late under the stars at just over 9-thousand feet in the Rockies, eating s’mores and enjoying an evening together.

This morning as we sat on a hillside we drew in a breath of fresh air, we listened, and noticed how rewarding it was to be silent. We talked about many things and captured the moment in time that God gave us. These are golden segments, moments we sometimes get, windows of precious relationships we take part in. It’s a space we welcome and celebrate which joins us together.

We gathered pinecones that day too by the trash-bags full.

Both he and his sister walked the forest floor creating imagined sculptures of all the things they could imagine with the pinecones. We took turns and shared stories. My grandson is a 5-year-old “expert” on animals of all sorts, dinosaur to Tiger Sharks. But he especially likes to talk about predators. My sweet and thoughtful 3-year-old granddaughter’s imagination soars with thoughts of unicorns and princesses, sparkling and brimming with heroism. She is careful and fearless all at the same time. She is brave, delightful, talkative and smart. When she tells a story, it comes to life as her eyes and hands express all that she feels.

I shared a story that day of a special tree on our property that is marked by a plaque stating it is an official Native American Prayer Tree.

These are special times God has given. He brings us together, He binds us and tethers us to Him through His creation, through questions of the young and old alike. Through experience, discovery and stories imagined and those that are true. He gives us Himself every second and every moment. The movement of time is a gift from Him. Sharing it with others, in silence, through connection or because we are one-on-one with Him. He is there. His Word is the source of His goodness, mercy and grace. This is reassuring to me. I love my family so much. I love even more that God grants me time to spend with them. He is the center of both and walks with us in the questions we have, in discoveries we share and in the silence of his creation.

I am thankful for His care to unite us, caring deeply for us and loving us beyond our wildest imagination. More than we can ask or imagine. I pray ladies you can take time to notice the small unlikely moments He gives you, tuck those away, write about them, treasure them because He is in them.

- Traci Hollingsworth