You might think – “She’s in
Kenya. How can she be writing about snow?” Maybe my Pagosa friends deliberate
they had enough of that “four-letter word and skip reading this post. But, here
it is anyway, my thoughts about snowflakes in Kenya – paper snowflakes that is.
During the Christmas season the
WOW mamas enjoyed a simple party where we decorated some cookies, talked about
cultural celebration traditions and the Nativity story. As we read Luke 2 and considered the events
surround Jesus birth, I snipped a tightly folded paper. When the mamas’ voices
abated into a rare quiet moment, I unceremoniously unfolded the clipped paper
revealing a beautifully detailed snowflake, (like many reading this probably
made as children).
“Oh!” exclaimed Josephine
with naive wonder. She stared at the intricate design. I scanned the other
faces to see the same smiling delight at a simple paper snowflake.
“How did you do that out of a
plain piece of paper?” quizzed Janet; grabbing up the scissors and paper, ready
to have at it. All the mamas gathered
around and watched closely as I creased and bent and squeezed the sheet and
then started cutting away. They learned
quickly and began creating beauty to share in their humble homes.
I’m writing this on New
Year’s Day. Some people quote, “January 1, 2016 is the first blank
page of a 365 page book. Write a good one.”
But me, I’m thinking about
that blank page being transformed into a lovely snowflake – something admired,
valuable, wanted by women who had never seen a paper snowflake before. How it
endured being twisted and bent, and pressed and cut and cut and cut and when it
was finally unfolded, it took those mamas’ breath away.
So, if 2016 is anything like
2015, I’m believing the Lord will take the blank pages that life seems to write
without concern – the cutting heartaches, the uncomfortable bending of plans,
the twisting and turning, the raw shaved edges and painful snips, the unbearable
squeezing and pressing, yet when it’s finally unfolded, something so beautiful
appears, it takes the world’s breath away.
“And you shall fold them up like a cloak; they shall be
changed,
and you are as you are; your years shall not end.” Hebrews 1:12.
Happy New Year from some of the WOW mamas
and the Haugers!
Asante sana for your prayers, support and encouragement.
