Stop and See God

Every now and then we have those days when we can not help but smile. It’s the kind of smile that comes from within you, and as the happiness inside bubbles over, a big smile stretches across your face. If others see this explosion of happiness they may ask what has caused you to smile in such a way, but at that you just smile bigger and respond “oh, nothing.” Nothing I can describe verbally at least…

I do not know if it is due to a high intake of Vitamin D from the recent sunny summer days here or not, but recently I have been having a lot of days like this, where my happiness bubbles out into a smile. It usually happens when I become suddenly present in the moment and fully take in all that is going on around me. When you are living and working somewhere you are liable to fall into a routine which causes you to live more in the future. Tomorrow you are going to have rice for dinner since you had pasta tonight, but you will have to go to the store on Friday since you are running out of rice, which means you will have to wake up extra early to get your morning exercise in before you go to town, and you have to exercise because next week you are on vacation where you will be seen in a swimsuit… And it keeps going, and you often pay little attention to what is around you in the here and now. Okay maybe you don’t fall into this category, but I certainly do. Even here in my relatively non-busy life in South Africa, I have fallen into this forward-thinking routine, but when I am pulled out of it into the here and now I start to realize how amazing this life is and I can see the beauty and love of God in everything around me.

The other day I was sitting iin a mint green room surrounded by some of my closest friends here and I had one of those moments. Looking around I saw the mint green walls with the plaster falling off in places showing the age of the house. Stones were placed on top of the wooden rafters to prevent the tin roof from sagging in between the supports. The red stained concrete floor was lightly coated in a layer of dust that coats everything in Masealama, but beneath my feet was strips of carpet that invited you to kick back, take your shoes off, and stay a while. I sunk in too far to the couch beneath me, and it made me realize that I was just one on a long list of visitors to this house. Looking outside I saw the bright sun shining down on the tall stalks of meile (corn) which seemed to grow overnight and were now swaying slightly in the gentle breeze. But inside we were comfortable, protected from the intense heat of the sun by the thick solid walls. The conversation was lively, as it usually is among the Lutheran youth here, and even though it was in Sepedi, I enjoyed looking at each person as they talked and reading their body language. And I could not help but smile.

This life is so different from my life back in the States, but I have become so comfortable and at home with it that often times I overlook the beauty around me every day. I encourage you to look for that beauty in your life. Take a moment and pull yourself out of the future. Stop running, take a look around, and enjoy what you discover around you. Whether it be a row of icicles on your porch, the little kid singing in church, or the gentle rumble of passing cars outside of your office window, you will find something that makes you smile. God is present anywhere and everywhere you look, but you can not see him if you don’t slow down and look. Stop and smell the roses, stop and see God.

~Heather Anne Nelson