snapshots of eternity

... otherwise known as, observations from this past weekend that made me stop and smile!

-> The bride and groom standing at the alter, vows already said, and the bride turns to the groom and whispers "Thank you for waiting for me." The groom begins to weep, not tears of sorrow, but tears of joy, because at long last, the long journey is over.

-> 18 month-old little boy perches on the edge of the pool, giggling at his dad, who stands in the pool, less than a foot away, cajoling him to jump, "Come on! I'll catch you! All you to do is trust me and jump." Yet the son does not move, until his father reaches out to him and lifts him up, and into the waters.

-> The tuxedo-clad stranger to my left diagraming complex mathematical families and sets on the back of the ivory and silver wedding menu, so immersed in his explanations and so entranced by the beauty of the mathematics that he cannot be distracted.

-> The same stranger becoming a friend over the course of the meal, and upon hearing about my summer of fund-raising, he asks, out of the blue, "Well, to which address would one send a check, because I want to support you."

-> Knowing the stories behind the scenes in the present: knowing the struggles that brought individuals to the joys which they now have:

* A bride and groom, held apart for years by a stubborn blockade, finally allowed to give themselves fully to each other

* A severely handicapped daughter, whose birth led her unbelieving parents to the Lord

* A broken relationship leading to a broken friendship, finally healed in small talk by the poolside.

-> A moment of clarity and understanding from a friend; a moment of truly knowing, "Yes! I understand! I am exactly the same way!" And the affirmation, "Yes, this is a struggle which we both have, but there is beauty in it as well..."

-> The joy of community. The familiarity of being known. The exuberance of free and unrestrained laughter. And the delight of candor and real, deep, all-the-way-to-the-eyes smiles. Welcome, friend, this is where you belong.