Kendall Smith, No-Div
Kendall is an elementary science teacher and an avid lover of books, nature, and long walks. She is easily distracted by thunderstorms and loves a good conversation over coffee.
For those of you who also live in the Continental United States, it’s likely that you are thawing out from one of the coldest two weeks in decades. In Kansas, we finally warmed up to 32 degrees this weekend, and the snow is slowly melting away. After more than a week of bitter cold and cloudy skies, the sun over the last few days has been nothing short of life-giving. Gradually, winter is giving way to the reality that Spring will come--gentle southerly breezes, the call of birds in the trees, trickling water along the roads and streams, and patches of grass that are growing in size by the hour. Every year, this thaw (actually in Kansas, multiple thaws) reminds me of the adventures of Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy in C.S. Lewis’s The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. When the children first enter the land it is trapped in a perpetual winter due to the curse of the White Which, who claims sovereignty over the land. After a while, as the children move through a frozen forest, they suddenly begin to notice signs of a thaw--which, according to the Beaver family, points to the return of the true King of the land, Aslan. This realization becomes the worst news for the White Witch when her dwarf driver suddenly shouts, “This is no thaw...This is Spring! Your winter has been destroyed, I tell you! This is Aslan’s doing.” Of course, for the four children and the rest of the magical world of Narnia--the return of Aslan is the best news. Every spring, I feel like I’m reliving this scene as winter’s spell begins to break.
There’s something in us that craves spring, isn’t there? The longer days fill us with hope and energy that lies dormant during the cold and dark months of winter. As the Earth tilts towards longer days and more direct sun, all of nature readies itself--for warmth, for new life, for resurrection even. My most favorite thing in the whole world is taking long walks in the sun. It feels, as I stand in the presence of its warmth and light, as if my entire soul is open before God. I’m reminded of the way a flower opens its petals to receive light and energy from the sun. Or how trees grow with their branches reaching up in praise to their Creator. Or how sunflowers turn to face the sun and adjust their position accordingly. The same Spirit who was at work in the creation of this world, who hovered over the dark unformed spaces of Genesis 1 still broods over us--drawing us to His Light, melting away the frozen places in our souls, readying our hearts for God’s work and God’s Kingdom.
The beauty of this creation is that it tells a story. Over and over, with each new year, the Earth and all that is in it reminds us of Life, Death, and the Promise of Resurrection. It tells us that there is always Hope. That Light is more powerful than darkness. That warmth trumps cold. And that Jesus’ resurrection--and his promise of ours--is the most True Reality we have. God is a giver of New Life. The growing patches of grass are proof of it.