“Human life is like a cloud that quickly disappears.” - - Psalm 39:5
Picture a blazing hot sun; raw, salty air; shrieking gulls; rhythmic waves; sand between your toes.
A little girl kneels at the beach, scooping and packing wet sand with her little plastic shovel into a bright orange bucket. She tips the bucket over and to her delight; a castle tower is deftly born. She giggles with pride!
She’ll toil all afternoon, spooning out a moat, grooming the walls, perfecting her design. Bottle caps will become sentries, popsicle sticks – bridges. Over time, an entire castle will materialize: a physical form to some, but to this sweet child – a dream captured in sand.
She’ll toil all afternoon, spooning out a moat, grooming the walls, perfecting her design. Bottle caps will become sentries, popsicle sticks – bridges. Over time, an entire castle will materialize: a physical form to some, but to this sweet child – a dream captured in sand.A grim-faced, hollow-eyed man is stressed out already – and it’s only 7:00AM on this gloomy day. At his desk he shuffles papers into stacks and delegates assignments. A Blackberry handcuffed to his soul, it’s interrupted nice dinners, little league baseball games, and even his morning shower. Numbers juggled; contracts signed. After a career of savage legal combat with colleagues he loathed, a ‘kingdom’ of sorts will emerge.
Two castle builders - much in common. They shape granules into grandeur; make something from nothing; work with diligence and determination. For both the tide will rise . . . and the end will eventually come. Both know to whom the sand belongs.
That’s where the similarities end! One will embrace the end, the other - ignore it!
As dusk approaches, the little girl jumps for joy! The rising tide brings no sorrow, no fear, no regret. Not at all surprised; she knew this would happen sooner or later. When the final breaker smashes into her castle and the sea sucks away her masterpiece, she smiles, picks up her tools, and taking daddy’s hand, she heads home never looking back.
The grownup’s not so wise! He’s terrified as the wave of stress floods his castle. He hovers over his wobbly empire to protect it, his health ravaged by abusively long hours, a family almost foreign to him, his ego built on false bravado. Shivering with fear, he snarls regretfully at a life mostly wasted on shallow relationships and material possessions.
Why should kids have all the fun? Find your beach, some sand, the sun’s warmth. Take a bucket, a small plastic spade and build a sandcastle of new memories with a child's heart. Then when the tide takes your masterpiece, salute the process, applaud that memories are built to last – then go home and thank God for tomorrow!
Lord I know you major in wisdom. My mind and heart are filled with the business of life and the cares of this world. Help me slow down, move calmly, look kindly, to find space so that there’s room for You and for others I love. Amen
