in the midst . . . of drought and of lent

 i was departing the office after our music team finished rehearsing, when i came upon the sky; what a great vision this was, and so, thanks to my trusty iphone, i was able to capture this delight!

the sky on the coast changes so rapidly that you hardly can blink before the images before you make a dramatic shift.  i still can hardly believe i am back on the coast, where i haven't been since 1980!

but here i am, drought and all!  and so it goes....

 when we were planning the season of lent with the worship design team, we were very mindful of our lack of water.  and since we planned the image of water, we have still had very little, and water rationing  is (voluntarily) in effect.

and so we are 'in the midst ... of drought and of lent'.

while attending my class on law enforcement for leadership santa cruz county, we began our day at the police department where they had recently dedicated a memorial garden for the two officers who were shot while on duty just over a year ago.

this fountain flows with renewing waters to remind us of the cycle of life.  while we are ever aware of this cycle, we are more mindful of death as it occurs in that cycle -- from illness and age.  we don't usually include the pangs of life to be experienced so abruptly, especially during a call of duty ....

 and so water becomes a form of healing for those moments, both anticipated and unanticipated, in our lives.

the beauty of the coast is ever changing, like the sky. and so it is with the water.  renewing, powerful, soothing.  a beauty to behold.

i keep trying to capture the 'perfect' splash on the rocks.  as they say, timing is everything, as is patience.  both of those adjectives continue to evade me as i work at getting the perfect picture.

 either my iphone clicks too slowly and misses the moment, or i don't hold out long enough in one spot to get the picture that 'i have seen before and after i click'.

water continues to be that vital source of life that comes in the moment and is lost.

but i did get the creative ingenuity of someone who was able to put rocks together to form an image...and the splash of water seemed 'just perfect' in this instance!

one of the things about lent is that as i walk, my pedometer just doesn't understand when i need to stop for five minutes at a time to get that 'perfect' picture.  and so it goes ... but i have managed to become part of the 10 million step club since i began my walking regiment two years ago ... who knew?!

one final 'in the midst experience during this drought and lenten season ... my yard.  without rain, and without watering, flowers don't really grow.  so, along with many others in the area, i keep empty milk jugs and buckets in the areas where i can collect water, be it a sink, a shower, or the garage.  and so, i was rewarded with my efforts by one -- count it ONE iris!  now, that was worth the wait!