Isn't this a pretty picture? This is at George Bush Park on the west side of Houston, just after an impressive thunderstorm had passed overhead. After I took this picture, I decided to follow that path over the hill, to see where it went. But first I had to put my purse in my trunk. I popped the trunk, got out of the car with my purse, locked and shut the doors....
....and then realized that my keys were still in the ignition. *sigh*
George Bush Park is almost an hour's drive from my house. I had to borrow a vehicle (thankfully, this was an option), get the boys, drive home to get my spare key, drive back to get my car, and then (finally) drive home again.
I firmly believe that all things happen for a reason. As I drove (and drove, and drove), I wondered why it was that I must make such a foolish mistake, and drive an extra two hours, on that particular Tuesday. Of course, the obvious answer is, "to learn not to be so absent-minded," but how, exactly? The only thing I could think to tell myself was "remember to remember things," which, let's face it, isn't particularly helpful.
Well, perhaps there's a profound lesson hiding somewhere in my experience last Tuesday. Or perhaps I was just meant to hear the spectacular performance of Handel's Messiah that was playing on the radio late that night. :) You know, Elijah was sound asleep in his carseat as The Messiah was playing, but the next day I heard him singing to himself, "For the Lord God omni-potent reign-eth, forever, forever..."
I am happy to have rediscovered this piece, definitely one of my favorites. If the 80's hairdos are hurting your eyes, you could try watching this performance instead:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3TUWU_yg4s
I would have posted it here, but the "embed" option is disabled.
The text of the Hallelujah Chorus is taken from Revelations 19:6, 19:16, and 11:15.
ReplyDeleteTelevision Reporter: Is there a specific instance in an airplane emergency when you can recall fear?
ReplyDeleteJim: Uh, well, I tell ya, I remember this one time--I'm in a Banshee at night in combat conditions, so there's no running lights on the carrier. It was the Shangri-La, and we were in the Sea of Japan, and my, my radar had jammed, and my homing signal was gone...because somebody in Japan was actually using the same frequency. And so it was -- it was leading me away from where I was supposed to be. And I'm lookin' down at a big, black ocean, so, I flip on my map light, and then suddenly: zap. Everything shorts out right there in my cockpit. All my instruments are gone. My lights are gone. And I can't even tell now what my altitude is. I know I'm running out of fuel, so I'm thinking about ditching in the ocean. And I, I look down there, and then, in, in the darkness, there's this, uh, there's this green trail. It's like a long carpet that's just laid out right beneath me. And it was the algae, right? It was that phosphorescent stuff that gets churned up in the wake of a big ship. And it was, it was, it was just leading me home. You know? If my cockpit lights hadn't shorted out, there's no way I'd have ever been able to see that. So, uh, you, uh, you never know...what...what events are going to transpire to get you home.
Yes, I love the Old AND New Testament in song!! I really miss listening to it, thanks for the link. Craig and I went YEARS ago, probably about 14 or so to a Messiah in Jones Hall--very, very powerful. Would sure love to go again someday.
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