reflections

In this photograph you can see the reflection of Mt. Timpanogos in a small pond near Utah Lake. I love reflections. They are not the actual object themselves, but the object is able to reflect off other surfaces their image. Isn't it interesting that the vast Timpanogos mountain can be reflected in such a small pond? So it is with Jesus Christ. His greatness and glory is so many times reflected in small and simple ways through those around us. I see Christ's reflection in the smile of a child, in the tears of the suffering, in an aged couple holding hands, in the sleepless eyes of a young mother, in the quiet prayer of troubled teenager, in one who is willing to stop and listen, in the tenderness of a loving brother. Yes, the way we see Christ is by looking for His reflection in others.

Utah lake was once a dump for waste and garbage. It was smelly and avoided. It has transpired through time into a beautiful lake which many people now enjoy. I took this picture this past week at sunset. It is a reminder to me that time is a great healer.

Larry the caterpillar

After years of consenting to pets and then remembering just why we tend to get rid of them a few months later, we stumbled upon Larry. A friend brought by a milkweed with a tiny brown speck on it. She told us that it was a caterpillar and gave us instructions to make sure it always had fresh milkweed and told us to have fun watching it grow. Larry was difficult to see at first without a magnifying glass, but within weeks he grew into a plump caterpillar. Every morning the kids would go check on Larry and see how he had grown in the night. The thrilling part was watching him go through the metamorphic state and transpire into a butterfly. It was miraculous! We loved Larry. It was fascinating to watch the process of a little speck on a weed turning into a magnificent butterfly who could fly and see the world. As I thought about this I realized how much we are like Larry ... just little specks on this earth with a very limited vision. But God sees more. He can take us and turn us into something beautiful. He can help us spread our wings and enable us to fly.

Thursday is hiking day! We load the backpacks with water bottles and snacks and head out to explore a new trail. It has been my favorite part of the summer. In a sense we are "running away" for a couple of hours. Running away from the telephone ringing, and friends knocking on the door, and even running away from our daily work for a while. It is so refreshing. Once we get to the trail head it is just me and my children. We get to talk and laugh and feel God's presence through nature. Because I have seven children ranging from 2-15 years old we have decided that the destination in the hike is not what matters. We have been enjoying the journey. Normally I will look at my watch and decide how much time we have for hiking that day. We hike for that long, and if the kids want to pick up every rock, smell every flower and sit under every shade tree, then that is what we do. When the time is up we turn around and head back home. There is no rush to reach a final destination, no urging and begging to please keep moving. Just a pleasure in enjoying the journey. I hope to always make it a priority to enjoy the journey in life.

These pictures were taken on our hike this week up "Rock Canyon" in Provo, Ut.

A few years ago we had a bird feeder hanging outside our kitchen window. We would put sunflower seeds in it and watch the birds come and enjoy themselves. The children absolutely loved it and we would spend hours watching the birds come and go. Just below the bird feeder was a flower bed. We spent years trying to get things to grow there, but to no avail. It was always in the heat of the sun and everything we planted there scorched and ended up dying. The year we put out the bird feeder, we had something incredible happen. That summer we had a beautiful flower bed full of sunflowers grow... to our utter surprise. We were delighted and enjoyed watching those sunflowers flourish in the heat of the sun. We now have a saying in our family: "Bloom where you are planted",... even if it is in the heat of the sun!

Many cherished memories have been made in this little cabin near Strawberry reservoir. I am not much of a camper, however I do love going to the cabin. My parents took their inheritance money from my Grandpa Kerksiek after he passed away and made something magical with it. My dad along with his sons and son-in-laws built this cabin. This cabin is magical to me. It was an investment that has had incredible returns in memories that we all cherish. I am sure that Grandpa Kerksiek couldn't be more pleased. He loved the outdoors and I have beautiful memories camping with my grandpa Kerksiek.

We took our children one year to the "Hot air Balloon Launch" for the 4th of July celebrations in Provo, Utah. It was breathtaking to see all of those balloons lifting off into the air. It is amazing that those large balloons are lifted simply by hot air. I believe that through the "heat" in our own lives we are raised to new heights.