Puppy Seeds

Things are not always as they appear, are they?  I’m beginning to wonder if anything is as it appears – it’s so very easy to be mistaken.

Years ago, during an effort to organize things in our kitchen, my husband placed seeds and cereals, nuts and condiments, seasonings and snacks, in separate plastic containers.  Then he labeled them.  On their tops, with a marking pen, he wrote things like almonds, flax, quinoa, walnuts, sesame seeds, couscous, pecans, wheat germ, coconut, smoky paprika. And, on one, poppy seeds.

Never mind that before long, as an item was used up and the need for an empty container occurred, something other than the original item was placed inside.  Of course the item did not now match the label.  No matter.  We’re both fairly bright and could see what was inside and make choices accordingly.  We wondered more than once why we’d marked them in the first place. The ink didn’t come off, even with scrubbing.  It did smudge and wear some, though, over time.

Hence, my discovery one day, upon opening a certain drawer, that we had a store of “puppy seeds,” the top of the “o” in “poppy” having vanished at some point.  I was tickled at the mental picture.  Puppy seeds!  Wouldn’t it be delightful to have access to such an ongoing wonder?  Imagine: to be able to plant a puppy any time I wanted one!!  I enjoyed this pleasurable fantasy every time I opened that drawer.  Every. Single. Time.  It doesn’t take much to amuse some of us.

I’ve been impressed, over these past 20 months of forced evaluation and re-evaluation of “facts” of how much I think I know and how very much I actually don’t.  Many of my beliefs have been challenged.  Many things I knew I knew . . . I’ve discovered I don’t.  Situations have surprised me.  Responses to situations have surprised me.  People have surprised me.  Really surprised me.  And facts as I’ve understood them are, in many cases, not facts at all.

I’m left wondering how many things I don’t understand, see clearly, am mistaken about.  Quite a few, probably.  Now I “see through a glass, darkly” (1 Corinthians 13:12, NIV).  It’s awfully uncomfortable, as you’ll have discovered for yourself.  But there’s hope for us – we know the One for whom all is clear.  There’s no confusion, no hesitation, no uncertainty on God’s part.  And we’re His, held in His hands and guided by His Spirit.  We’re safe there, in His hands; it’s the only place we are.  To mix a metaphor, “He will cover you with his feathers.  He will shelter you with his wings.  His faithful promises are your armor and protection” (Psalm 91:4, NLT).  Isn’t that a relief?

In the meantime: puppy seeds, anyone?  Yes, please!!