While at home during the lockdown, I have been going through all of my old photos and digitizing them. It means I have been mind traveling all through the past 57 years. Lots of pictures bring tears to my eyes and not because they are covered with dust. Cindy and I each have favorites. We both love this one; Our two boys walking down a trail.
Neither of us remember which trail. I can’t tell you anything about the “where” of this picture. It’s just the feeling I can talk about. I’m hot natured and we rarely put the boys in long sleeves unless it was the fall or winter, so I’m guessing autumn. We did dress our kids alike. I have apologized to them about this, and there is something about the light that feels warm and embracing. I think it’s New Mexico. The long shadows tells me it was either early or late, certainly not mid-day. When we lived in the Panhandle, we traveled each autumn to see the aspens change color. I think this was on one of those trips. Maybe I’m just fooled by the shirt color, but it’s my best guess.
Look at our son on the left. His arm is held up and in front of his brother, but not because they are walking hand in hand, but it looks like a sweeping gesture. Our son on the right has something in his hands, my hunch is it’s a piece of grass that he is spinning. They don’t seem concerned about us at all. We are clearly behind them. The pathway arches off to the left and they are headed that way together.
I just read this week about a friend whose family has fallen apart and they are no longer communicating with each another. It made me so sad. I talked to another friend that is headed toward divorce and I could feel my chest tighten and my eyes moisten in grief. There is, in this picture, so much of the longing in my life. I want to reach the end of the road together. There seems to be so much pulling people apart, so much hurt and pain, but somehow we have to find a way toward peace, love, and togetherness. Somehow, we have to find a way to walk the road together. One of the reasons the world needs to know the way of Jesus is because it is a pathway that can help people stay together, helping us see the best in each other and forgiving the worst. It promises reunion. It promises that at the end of the road we will all arrive at the feet of the Savior surrounded by love. That is what this picture makes me feel.