Times and Seasons

Biting into the fruit,
Deep red juices staining our lips,
We eat one after another.
"Don't you think that strawberries just taste like sunshine?"
My mother asks me.
Smiling, not quite understanding,
I nod, grin ready on my face.

Another time and another season.

A long summer's day is coming to its close.
We sit out on our covered porch.
The sky is filled with dusty orange, rose, and plum,
A lovely yet unearthly mixture.
"Isn't nature amazing?" she asks.
I feel a sense of rightness to the moment,
A small stirring enters my soul.
I answer yes.

Another time and another season.

Leaves of red and orange flame are starkly set
Against the periwinkle sky.
The crisp air gives us a small taste
Of the impending frost.
"Being outside is invigorating to the soul, wouldn't you say?"
She asks me out in the yard.
I take in the contrasting intense beauty,
My being is touched, moved.
I bask in the moment.

Another time and another season.

The snow is falling, huge flakes
The size of a fist.
They float like feathers
Falling in communal silence,
Each with their own pattern and sparkling delight.
"Do you feel God in nature?"
My mother asks me.
The beauty of winter is captivating,
Delight reaches from my head to my toes.
I understand.

Strawberries as sunshine,
Warm blends of sunset color,
Brilliant contrasts of leaves and sky,
Quiet snowflakes falling.

She doesn't feel God in nature.
She knows God in nature.
And now, so do I.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 -- To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven