Bitter.
That’s how the morning started out.
Determined to have a few minutes of peace before wild chatter and hollering signaled the official start of the day, I dragged myself out from beneath the bundle of warm blankets atop the bed.
I was immediately jolted from my usual morning stupor by the bone-chilling temperature and a desperate search for warm socks and my robe.
“It’s too cold,” I grumbled under my breath as I hastily wrapped myself in a layer of fleece. “Bitter cold,” I thought.
I poured a hot cup of tea and proceeded to go over my list of what I would accomplish before the kids woke up.
Bible study.
Return emails.
Write.
But then.
The door to my office creaked open, my daughter silently peeking in from behind it.
And I sighed. Or maybe it was a grunt.
“Why is she up already?” I wondered. And then, “Why can’t I EVER have time to get anything done?”
Needless to say, my response to her and this unplanned disturbance wasn’t exactly warm.
As I begrudgingly made breakfast, my heart and mind brimmed with bitterness while I considered the ways in which I had supposedly been wronged.
I had made the effort to be intentional with my time, followed through, and still my plans were thwarted.
The hustle and bustle had begun, yet my thoughts were frozen in bitter resentment.
But as we drove to school, I noticed the thick blanket of frost glistening beneath the rays of the morning sun. Expansive fields of corn and prairie grass were adorned in what looked like layers and layers of sparkling diamonds.
And I was in awe.
The sky was clear. The sun bright. And the earth shimmered, it’s beauty capturing my attention despite the bitter temperatures and the bitterness that had invaded my heart.
It was a testament to the truth that even during life’s most bitter moments, abundant beauty is available to warm the soul.
If only we can divert our attention away from the bitterness for long enough to see it.
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