Dashboard Saints
"O great God, be small enough to hear me now." Nichole Nordeman
Do you have a muse? Do you have a collection of dashboard saints that you carry around and when you reach your destination you set them on your shelf, for protection, for a reminder of what your purpose in this sometimes dark and lonely and cold world? Do you stare up into their little faces and suddenly find the perfect formulation of words that accurately describes your experiences? And maybe they don't have the power to help you create something, but they remind you to feel, and even if it's just a shadowy experience that can't be pinned to the board like a lifeless butterfly you know it's there and real and you wish it could be seen by others? Some are less dusty than others, because of constant handling, but they all sit there and keep me grounded. They're ceramic shadows of real life people, many of whom I have never met (and most likely never will) but somehow I feel like I know them, becasue how could I not feel close to those who inspire me to be better, to love God more and to love more people in the process?And if I were to write a book someday I would feel compelled to name them and give a description of just exactly how they kept me going forward. I love knowing that they will whisper in my ears forever, that no matter how far away I am they will still be there. Emily Dickinson said "I dwell in possibility" and with my dashboard saints I feel like those possibilities are more easily attainable. Life is breathtaking. And I drive on.
Do you have a muse? Do you have a collection of dashboard saints that you carry around and when you reach your destination you set them on your shelf, for protection, for a reminder of what your purpose in this sometimes dark and lonely and cold world? Do you stare up into their little faces and suddenly find the perfect formulation of words that accurately describes your experiences? And maybe they don't have the power to help you create something, but they remind you to feel, and even if it's just a shadowy experience that can't be pinned to the board like a lifeless butterfly you know it's there and real and you wish it could be seen by others? Some are less dusty than others, because of constant handling, but they all sit there and keep me grounded. They're ceramic shadows of real life people, many of whom I have never met (and most likely never will) but somehow I feel like I know them, becasue how could I not feel close to those who inspire me to be better, to love God more and to love more people in the process?And if I were to write a book someday I would feel compelled to name them and give a description of just exactly how they kept me going forward. I love knowing that they will whisper in my ears forever, that no matter how far away I am they will still be there. Emily Dickinson said "I dwell in possibility" and with my dashboard saints I feel like those possibilities are more easily attainable. Life is breathtaking. And I drive on.