Smiling Barn
The car whirred past the barn. I just caught it out of the corner of my eye. I think it was smiling at me. I stopped the car. I really needed a smile. I turned around and went back and pulled the car to the shoulder. The barn was ready for the picture. Its eyebrows raised and mouth wide open.
I flipped back through my pictures of the week and came across it. It made me smile again. I assume the person who owns the land knows what a special barn he has. All day, every day it wishes travelers a good journey.
I needed a smile because I was so sad. I had sat all morning with a friend in divorce court. We had watched group after group approach the bench and tried not to look as the judge dissolved the unions. It was painful to behold — one the saddest rooms I could ever imagine.
I listened as hearts broke and bitterness boiled. There were tears of grief and smiles of relief. There were slouched shoulders and lifted eyes. Then it was my friend’s turn. It was excruciating. We left. We cried. Eventually, I had to head home. It was a long drive.
The rain hit the window sporadically. The clouds hung low and dark. It mirrored my face and my mood. I would wipe tears from my eyes like very slow windshield wipers. I just wanted to get home. I wanted the clouds to lift. I wanted the sun to shine. I wanted to wake up from this really bad nightmare, but I didn’t, it was real.
I meet with lots of couples getting married and too many couples getting divorced. There has got to be a way to help reduce the number of unhappy marriages, unfaithful spouses and unresolved conflicts.
I have seen marriages get near the end and then do a 180 degree turn. I’ve seen people get reconciled and go on to live happy, healthy and rewarding marriages. What makes the difference? Grace. I’ve never seen reconciliation happen outside the realm of grace and forgiveness. It takes two people working hard in the process. My heart drops when I hear that one spouse is willing to work, but the other is uncertain, uncommitted, or unwilling—at that moment, the outcome is already determined.
I keep thinking of that barn. It doesn’t have to sit with a sick friend or go to divorce court, but we do. We need each other so much because the real world is full of pain and sorrow.
Some days you get to smile and other days cry. Some days you get to be the barn, other days the guy with his head on the steering wheel and tears in his eyes.
Looking for the rays of the son,
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