It’s still dark outside. It’s morning. But the light of the sun is still hiding. We meander through the lines with excitement, curiosity, hope, memories, and longing. There are hundreds of us. We shuffle, we smile with our eyes, we wait our turn. We show our passports and driver’s license, boarding passes, and briefly lower our masks. We lift our arms, gather our things, and make our way to our gates. To walk or to skywalk?
I chose the skywalk. Hoping it would bring me that much closer to a cup of tea before heading to my gate. As I turned right and right again, preparing to get on the skywalk I noticed faded outlines on the well weathered some shade of used to be white linoleum floors. There were several of them every few steps. Shaped like huge tear drops. Before I could finish wondering what had been there that no longer was, I remembered. I remembered that it was mere months ago that what filled these tear drop shaped outlines every few steps, or every six feet, were signs. Signs that marked where to stand in order to safely social distance and decrease the likelihood of spreading a virus that’s claimed hundreds of thousands of lives in the last almost two years.
As I continued towards my early morning tea I couldn’t help but think, that despite the removal of what I am sure were very clear and present signs about social distancing, the presence of those signs lingered. I knew they existed, had been there, had been real.
I don’t know about you, but sometimes in life grace, goodness, and even God don’t seem to be abundantly present.
They don’t seem big, colorful, unmistakably noticeable as I walk through various seasons. Circumstances arise, masking what feels like the graceful way, the good way, the God way. And I don’t find comfort in knowing I’m not alone. But if I keep walking, if I keeping going in the last known right direction (the last known moment when everything was chrystal clear), if I keep asking, seeking, knocking, I notice the grace, goodness, and God are still there. That circumstances may have shifted some things, allowed things to wane, to fade but it does not take away from the reality of God’s very real presence, lavished grace, or the goodness He provides and sends after us along with his mercy.
Ruby oolong. That was the tea that I sat and sipped while I waited at my gate. While I looked out into the darkness, waiting for my turn to board, waiting for the sun to rise. Sitting, sipping, waiting, and noticing. Noticing that as any of us in the boarding area got closer to the line for our tickets to be scanned again, giving us permission to walk the jetway and take our seats on the plane…there were dots on the heather blue carpet. These dots were various shades of blue with big letters reminding us to safely socially distance and remain sex feet apart.
Don’t ask me what changed in this part of the airport from the other, other than the presence of carpet. I have no idea why a mere few turns and there was the undeniable presence of the same message that had been missing a few turns and a skywalk prior. Sure these were dots and the others were large tear drop shape images. But I was familiar with both and the message didn’t change.
Can I remind us in this moment that there’s something to be said for knowing God, His grace, and His goodness so that when life hurls hurt, anxiety, grief, loss, disappointment, we are familiar enough to keep going, to wait, to rest. That we’re familiar enough to know His grace, goodness, and abundant love for us doesn’t change? That the shadows of shame, mistakes, or our past can at best obscure these realties but not deny them?
It’s a full flight, and we’re making our way to Chicago as I write this. The sun is shining and most of my fellow travelers are sleeping. We are all journeying. We are all in our masks, acutely aware of the reality of the pandemic, the presence of harm by way of a virus. And yet here we are going, doing our best to get to where the day brings us.
I want to remind you as you journey, as you do your best, as you remain aware of all the things that may present as harm or hurt in your own life, as you keep going, to keep a look out for the signs of God at work in your life. To notice His presence, for His Grace, His goodness. May you know He is with you, you are not alone, and whatever may arise, in His goodness He is still providing us with the grit and the grace for all that is and is to come.
With Love,
Grit + Grace