Look to the Hills

"I look to the hills, where does my help come from?  My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth." - Psalm 121

"Some places take your breath away. Some places let you breathe." -Unknown

Today, we woke the boys up at 4:15 am and drove two and half hours through the Flint Hills of Kansas (Yes, there are hills in Kansas!) to the state cross country meet in Wamego.

As you may have heard. Kansas is a place of extreme weather.  We are prone to bitter north winds in the winter. Hot, days and muggy nights in summer. There are occasional hail storms and tornadoes when the cold north winds and the hot south winds don't get along. There are torrid rains and relentless droughts.  There are spring storms and autumn snows.   

However, Kansas is also a place of amazing beauty.  On the Kansas plains at dawn, everywhere I looked, the sky met the horizon. Heaven kissed the earth. The sun brooded over the surface of an undulating sea of grass. I nearly wept with joy.  

It is what I needed. It is what we all need. A reset. A broader perspective. A reminder that there is more to life than a list. There is more to life than success, politics, and the stock market.  There is help and strength and peace as strong and deep as prairie grass and as gentle as a morning dove.

It has been a difficult couple of weeks. Difficult meetings at work. Health issues in my wife's family.  School drama.  Bad drivers.  It is easy for me to allow these things to wall me in and close me off...  All I see is what is right in front of me.  

Not this day. 

We were tipped off to a quaint little place for breakfast in a residential neighborhood across from the city park. The coffee wasn't great, but the pancakes were huge and the conversation was fantastic. I dusted off some old dreams of a little cabin somewhere out there on the infinite horizon, and my wife dreamed of Christmas parties and time in her studio.  We talked a lot about work and family concerns, but laughed and shared a leisurely moment while the little boys ran out to play in the park. 

We were ready when it came time to drive to the meet. We cheered our oldest son on as he ran and we enjoyed the fading warmth of the brilliant sun.  It was perfect....and, by-the-way, we won state!