22nd November 2021

A Father’s Love.

I am rather depleted of any helpful thoughts at the moment, so I have gone to a resource that I often use. This is a book of short meditations called

Compass Points: Meeting God Every Day at Every Turn by Margaret Silf.

I have chosen this one as it resonated with me and the way life is.

She writes, “Idly I watch from my window as a young dad walks past outside with his small daughter, who is riding her little tricycle and is full of the joys of spring. Then suddenly, out of the blue, she collides with the curb and falls off her bike.

“As she bursts into hysterical tears and screams, dad leaps into action. He pushes aside the overturned tricycle and gathers the little one into his arms, checking for injuries and offering comfort. She continues to scream for a few minutes – this isn’t going to be a quick fix. But the next time I glance at them, dad is gently encouraging her to try the bike again. Between subdued sobs, she gingerly begins to pedal again, and they are off, dad carefully shielding her from the hazardous curb side.

“How vividly this reflects incidents when life has jolted me suddenly into a state of shock and I have screamed at God inwardly in protest at the pain and frustration of it all. But there were never any divine reproaches for not paying sufficient attention. No rebukes, just a gathering into a heart that knows much better than mine that all shall be well, and that the journey must continue.”

Elizabeth Webb