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She
must have been six years old, this beautiful brown
haired, freckled-face Image of innocence.
Her
mom looked like someone from the Walton's or a
moment captured by Norman Rockwell.
Not
that she was old-fashioned. Her brown hair was ear
length with enough curl to appear natural.
She
had on a pair of tan shorts with light blue trim.
Her sneakers were white with blue trim.
She
looked like a mom. It was pouring outside. The kind
of rain that gushes over the tops
of
rain gutters, so much in a hurry to hit the Earth it
has no time to flow down the spout.
Drains
in the nearby parking lot were filled to capacity
and some were blocked so that huge
puddles
made lakes around parked cars. We all stood under
the awning and just outside
the
door of the Gift Shop. We waited, some patiently,
others irritated because
nature
messed up their hurried day. I am always mesmerized
by rain fall. I get lost in the
sound
and sight of the heavens washing away the dirt and
dust of the world. Memories of running,
splashing
so carefree as a child came pouring in as a welcome
reprieve from the worries
of
my day. Her voice was so sweet as it broke the
hypnotic trance we were all caught in.
"Mom,
let's run through the rain," She said.
"Let's
run through the rain!" She repeated.
"No,
honey. We'll wait until it slows down a bit,"
Mom replied.
This
young child waited about another minute and repeated
her statement.
"Mom,
Let's run through the rain."
"We'll
get soaked if we do," Mom said.
"No,
we won't, Mom. That's not what you said this
morning," the young girl said as she
tugged
at her mom's arm.
"This
morning? When did I say we could run through the
rain and not get wet?"
"Don't
you remember? When you were talking to daddy about
his cancer, you said,
"If
God can get us through this, He can get us through
anything!"
The
entire crowd stopped dead silent. I swear you
couldn't hear anything but the rain.
We
all stood silently. No one came or left in the next
few minutes. Mom paused and
thought
for a moment about what she would say.
Now
some would laugh it off and scold her for being
silly. Some might even ignore
what
she said. But this was a moment of affirmation in a
young child's life. A time
when
innocent trust can be nurtured so that it will bloom
into faith.
"Honey,
you are absolutely right. Let's run through the
rain. If God let's us
get
wet, well maybe we just needed washing," Mom
said. Then off they ran.
We
all stood watching, smiling and laughing as they
dared past cars and yes
through
puddles. They held their shopping bags over their
heads just in case.
They
got soaked. But they were followed by a few
believers who screamed
and
laughed like children all the way to their cars.
Perhaps inspired by their faith
and
trust. I want to believe
that
somewhere down the road in life, Mom will find
herself reflecting
back
on moments they spent together, captured like
pictures in the scrapbook
of
her cherished memories.
Maybe
when she watches proudly as her daughter graduates.
Or as her Daddy
walks
her down the aisle on her wedding day. She will
laugh again. Her heart will
beat
a little faster. Her smile will tell the world they
love each other.
But
only two people will share that precious moment when
they ran through
the
rain believing God would get them through. And yes,
I did. I ran. I got wet.
I
needed washing.
To
everything there is a season and a time to every
purpose under the heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1
 
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