Until Then

A robin was swinging.
Literally swinging.
Swinging on the tree swing hanging from a tree on our front lawn.
It landed there on purpose; it began swinging by accident.

I noticed the robin as my husband was leaving for work.
My husband was talking to me as he got into his car.
I looked out the garage window towards the tree swing.
The tree swing my youngest daughter wanted my husband to build for her.

The tree swing that gave her many hours of play.
The tree swing that young and old enjoy when they come to our house.
The tree swing with the long ropes that are securely fastened to the walnut tree.
This same tree swing was a playground for a bird.

As I watched, the robin landed on the swing.
I would think that a robin would be so light that the swing would barely move.
However, either because of the speed of flight or the way it landed, the swing moved.
It swayed back and forth as if a child was sitting on its wooden seat.

I could almost imagine the robin smiling, if of course robins smiled at all.
The movement did not startle the bird.
The robin continued to stay there as the swing moved back and forth.
It was just one of those whimsical moments that I was so glad I didn’t miss.

A robin was swinging were the words I wrote down on a post-it note.
The same post-it note tablet I use when I have ideas.
The same post-it note tablet that holds my random thoughts as they come.
As they so often do.

It was a bit of whimsy that made me smile.
Something terribly out of place yet terribly right at the same time.
It was a swing that my daughter enjoyed for many happy hours.
Now it was a swing for a robin.

I was on my morning walk.
I saw something on the road ahead of me.
From a distance the thing I saw was in the shape of an L.
Upon closer inspection, it was the neck of a duck with the head still intact.

Except that it startled me and frightened me, it reminded me of Mary Poppins’ umbrella.
The umbrella with the bird’s head that talked to her.
The bird’s head that she silenced when he spoke out of turn about the Banks’ children.
It is whimsical in a movie; it is frightening in reality.

I looked around to see if the body of the duck was anywhere nearby.
What animal killed the duck and severed its head?
I told my youngest daughter about what I saw later that day.
It’s funny you’re saying that, Mom; I saw the skeleton of an animal today.

My daughter had been taking care of plants for our neighbors while they were away.
As she walked up the long driveway, there was a skeleton of an animal along the edge.
I wondered what kind of animal would kill an animal and leave the skeleton, she said.
But the bones I saw were not the bones of a duck, Mom.

There are no bears here.
We have many deer but this did not seem characteristic of them.
There are turkey buzzards that we will see after something has died.
What killed these two animals and left parts of them for someone to find?

We may never know the answer.
A bit of whimsy on the one hand.
A bit of disgust on the other.
It is the way of things, the tension in the fallen-ness of this world.

A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him – the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord – and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist. The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together and the  lion will eat straw like an ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper’s nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters covers the sea. In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious. (Isaiah 11:1-10)

Someday.
But not now.
Today in this fallen world, there is death, and sadness, and pain, and brokenness.
One glorious day, all will be made right; all will be redeemed.

Tears will be gone.
Broken things will be made whole.
Old things will be made new.
Death will be defeated.

And his place of rest will be glorious.
Rest.
Redemption.
Restoration.

One day.

But until then, we wait.
There will be the skeleton of an animal on the edge of the driveway.
There will be the neck and the head of a duck on the road.
There will be a robin swinging.

Whimsy and sadness.
Joy and grief.
Life and death.
Redemption and lost-ness.

But one day, one glorious day…

Until then, we watch and we wait.
We believe and we hope.
Until then.
Until then.

2 responses to “Until Then”

1. I live these days with the dichotomies of hope and grief, joy and sorrow, whimsy and sadness. It sometimes seems so strange to hold incredible comfort in my heart while understanding how very much we have lost as a family. I was just thinking this morning about Heaven, and about the glories that await us there. This is an incredible Hope. But the swinging robin, the sweet memories of our children and happy times as a family, the whimsical things that catch our eye and make us glad — these are the gifts for us to enjoy HERE & NOW while we wait for THERE & THEN.

   How very much I love this post, Gina! It is another gift in the here and now that has caused me to remember and given me comfort. Thank-you. And blessings to you and yours today. May there be more “swinging robins” to give you inspiration and joy.

   Reply

   • Mary Ann,
     We are kindred spirits, you and I. We tend to see the “swinging robin” and rejoice because God allowed us to see it. Even in the midst of sadness, there is joy! He gives us gifts every day! There is the tension to be sure in the now and not yet, but in Christ we have an unspeakable joy that permeates everything.
     Gina

     Reply