Friday, May 4, 2012

Silent blessings….

ballet

Sometimes I life we wait and wait …for something HUGE.

we spend our time waiting for some MAJOR sign or life experience..

we wait for that AH-ha moment to “make us realize”  or teach a lesson.

Then…sometimes because we are so busy and consumed in our heads that we miss those simple LIFE LESSON OPPORTUNITIES that God presents.

As parents it is sooo easy to do that.

It is so easy to get wrapped up in the EVERYDAY.

Places to go

Things to do

people to see

errands to run

bills to pay

kids to teach

animals to feed

dishes to wash

clothes to fold

a husband to tend to

life to live

Life can be full of endless distractions.  It is so easy to get SOOOO  caught up in “the grind” of our “first-class American lives” that we forget what is really important.

We have a tendency to be spoiled and forget fairly fast how GREAT we have it.

It happens to me all the time.

Apparently, it is something I need to learn bcs I am reminded of it A LOT.

LOL

Yesterday, Shasha had her first performance with the Saint Augustine Ballet at the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind.

It is a WELL KNOWN school we have here in Saint Augustine specifically for those who are deaf and blind.  Children travel here and RESIDE on campus away from their parents just for the opportunity attend.

Ray Charles went there. So cool.

As I walked onto the campus thru the beautiful trees and buildings, I couldn’t help but notice the SILENCE.

It was so quiet and calm…

Then I walked thru the doors of the auditorium and the first thing I saw was a teacher. He said hello in sign language and continued his silent conversation with another teacher.  As a matter of fact …there were teachers all over the entrance…in silent conversations.

Then it hit me…..There was a reason for the silence.

There was a reason that there wasn’t the “usual” school sounds of a bustling campus.

These kids couldn’t hear or see…some BOTH.

As I stood at the back of the room and watched as a room full of deaf and blind children watched/listened to my daughter dance onstage….

I understood.

Sometimes silence is exactly what we need.

Sometimes it takes silence for you to be able to SEE CLEARLY.

As the teachers led the kids out of the auditorium they filed past me in a sort of strange caravan  of different ages and abilities. No screaming, no talking, no chattering. Just silence and sign language.

It was as if God had put me in a place that was SOOOO QUIET…I could HEAR my blessings.

He put me in a place where I could SEE those blessing manifested in front of me.

WOW.

Sometimes we go about life only seeing the BIG THINGS, only appreciating the MAJOR stuff  in life.

Sometimes we go around and take for granted WHAT we see everyday…

because we CAN SEE everyday.

We may not realize the beauty of NOISE in our day…because we can HEAR everyday.

It was an amazing experience to be able to watch as these kids lived their lives.  Lots of them were far from their parents or any family….in silence or darkness…trying to navigate a world that is INEVITABLY hard for them…from the start.

And they were LIVING…appreciating a BALLET put on by students their age…who COULD SEE AND HEAR.

My heart was filled.

Filled with silent blessings…..RINGING in my ears.

2 comments:

Elizabeth Higley said...

Beautiful! I, also have preformed there and I recall feeling a sense of awe and gratitude for God's grace and blessings. <3

Dad said...

I love you