Redemption and Spring

"Awake thou wintry earth—
Fling off thy sadness!
Fair vernal flowers, laugh forth
Your ancient gladness!"
-Thomas Blackburn

Spring is an overflow. It's like the earth is having its morning stretch and yawning on the way to the kitchen to cook me pancakes. The smell makes its way to my room and makes me smile as I have my first coherent thoughts. Spring has its' smells that seem to wake me up from my winter sleep and my imagination is once more enlivened as I am surrounded by wonder. Wonder comes upon me when something beautiful happens that I can't explain; something beautiful like the flowers blooming, the wind blowing through new leaves for the first time, and the way the Spring sunlight makes your skin shiver; beautiful things that are reflections of resurrection and the melting of the winter that clings to us. These reflections fill me with wonder.

Spring always makes me think of "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" and how there are all these whisperings of Aslan's return accompanied by melting snow and a warm wind. It's such a beautiful reflection of how there are whisperings all around us of Jesus' return when the spell of sin will be broken and Spring will come for us.

I also think of the verse in Nichole Nordeman's "Every Season",

"And everything that’s new has bravely surfaced
Teaching us to breathe
What was frozen through is newly purposed
Turning all things green
So it is with You
And how You make me new
With every season’s change
And so it will be
As You are re-creating me
Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring."

All of the seasons speak to us of the Lord's love in different ways and He uses them to recreate us. I love how in Spring, the beautiful inheritance that Jesus paid for with His suffering on the cross, is seen and felt in tangible ways all around us. In a small way we can see the fulfillment of the suffering we go through and how the Lord redeems it to make something more beautiful than we could have ever imagined. And to think these things are just whisperings of His return. It's all very beautiful to think of...

"You should see the sun in Spring
Coming out after a rain
Suddenly, all is green
Sunshine on everything..."
-from "Stars" by David Crowder Band

Wales: What a wonder! to be living...

I had never been to Wales before. There is a subtle beauty there that you wouldn't see at first. The weather is mostly rainy and the people seem normal enough. I think what I loved was that I wasn't overwhelmed by it. It wasn't a culture trying to be attractive to tourists or anything like that. Things seem pretty slow-paced and I didn't feel rushed along. I could just relax and enjoy things.
I was really excited because I was able to meet up with my friend Peter who's working with a church over there. He met Matt and I at the train station and spent the day with us. I wanted to go to the park of course which blew me away. The trees were spectacular and looked like they had been there for hundreds of years. The picture above is of Peter and I at the park. I couldn't just look at the trees of course and so I shimmied my way onto this branch even though it was a little wet.
I don't know how they come up with names for pubs over there and I never seem to know what they mean half the time. I guess I should just ask the people who work there if they even know. Here is me and Matt in front of one.
That night we decided we wanted to see some live music so Peter, Matt and I went to this pub called O'Neill's and I was so surprised by the music. There were three guys around my age who each played their own set of music on the guitar. It was all their own songs and it was anything but mediocre. The first guy, Gethin John, really resonated with me the most. He sang songs about nature and memories and sunrises, stuff like that. He was some very poetic lines like, "All my todays are like my yesterdays of untouchable tomorrows." Here is a not-so-good picture of Gethin playing.
I went and talked to him for a bit when he went outside for a cigarette. He said he grew up in Western Wales looking out on the Irish Sea and said he loves being out in nature. I had heard that the Welsh people were gifted in music and poetry but I didn't expect to be totally blown away. It was cool. There was a crazy old couple who danced together at times, were really playful with each other, and were always getting into the music. It was fun to watch. Then there was the couple next to us making out in the corner who we tried to ignore. Luckily, the old guy dancing made fun of them and they left.

Matt and I got coffee and a muffin the next morning. Here was my muffin and out the window you can see O'Neill's where we ate and saw music the night before. Your first morning in another country always tends to be beautiful.

Part of a poem by Welsh poet Ann Griffiths (1776-1805):

What a wonder! to be living,
once to furnace flames consigned;
greater wonder, after testing,
centred here, like gold refined;
time of bleaching, day of sifting,
yet so calm, without distress,
for the one who sifts the harvest,
is himself my hiding place.