Blinding Arrogance

I was an outdoor kid, always outside, encouraged by a wonderfully smart mother, who trusted our big black and white collie, Teddy to protect me. Teddy walked ahead of me and I kept my eyes open and vigilant. I knew not to walk around blindly. There were real dangers lurking: bobcats and rattlesnakes to name a few. I carried a thick stick with me and used my senses and common sense. Sometimes I would experience a feeling of uneasiness when I ventured too far from home. I would turn around and head back quickly. I trusted these feelings. This was unchartered California territory with homes wide apart.

Nature, animal life, the weather, the colored leaves of fall I felt deeply connected to. I loved a rainy day! I knew where the large lizards lived and the snakes. I could find a scorpion. I had two pet frogs and I knew their secret hiding places in the drainage pipes from the roof. The colored leaves in the fall amazed me. I hunted for rose quartz and gold.

Have you ever pondered: rain or seasons? How we depend on them? How they are timely? How do they happen?

I’m not a meteorologist, but I find these things absolute signs of Creation, with an immense intelligence behind them–not happen-chance. They are also, signs of God’s Mercy and Love.

Think about it: we are on a planet, in the sky! Yet, we have seasonal rain, certain, and timely. Even tornadoes are predictable. We know their seasons. Storms. We also know their seasons. We aren’t ‘taken by surprise’. The clouds come together darkening the sky. Some people are very good at predicting the weather. God is Merciful. The farmer is warned. Those who live close to the earth read her well. Captains of ships also read the weather and the movement of the water; the birds in the sky and how they travel.

The things in nature are supposed to get our attention. Stargazers, moon lovers, water enthusiasts, mountain climbers, gemstone hunters, animal activists, beachcombers… This is how God gets our attention. There are more wonders here on Earth, in Space, in the Ocean and Seas; from the mountain tops and valleys that would take volumes to discuss.

There is a prophesy, that before the end of time, the Arabian desert will turn once again to lush green fed by rain. Rain! I miss the rain. If we get a drop we celebrate. This region is very dry. We do have the beautiful Red Sea and the nearby mountain region where fruit like apricot, cactus, watermelon, grapes, figs, and pomegranate (to name a few) are grown and there it gets more rain. But here in Jeddah, we get very little. We are dependent upon the desalination plants. Mecca was blessed with the underground miracle well water called, Zam Zam, but the people don’t live off of it.

It has rained here a few times very hard and do you know what happened? All around began to turn green. Even the craggy mountain tops and the valley and flatlands sprouted everywhere green! The mountains of volcanic rock looked like green velvet. How can someone not see God in this???

If this lockdown didn’t teach us something about how dependent we are on how we get our food and water; our livelihood… nothing else will. We are not as strong and independent as we think we are–none of us, no matter what ‘kind’ of government we are living under…

Our freedom, rain, who or what we are allegiant to… are things to ponder and not take for granted. God is a loving God and has done many things to get our attention. Some are just so puffed up that they can’t see. Instead of seeing creation as a gift, some see it as something to conquer, to own and abuse for selfish gain.