Sky
One of the ‘rewards’ of being on a Mission trip is the opportunity to indulge in the luxury of ‘just being’ after a long day of physical labor; to enjoy those brief periods of time in which to simply sit; to be; to let your thoughts wander while listening to the sounds of the ever present wind, grasses and birds; to look at the sky.
The sky in South Dakota is unlike the experience of sky anywhere else that I have ever been. I know the skeptics among you are saying, "Please, there's sky everywhere".
But I swear to you it's not like this.
South Dakota sky is omnipresent; its on top of, and surrounding you, at all times – and you know it. There's a 'nearness' to it that makes you reach up, as if you could touch it. It has personae, and moods, all its own and it commands your attention.
You simply can’t ignore it; it's a landscape in itself.
I’ve given up trying to figure out why that’s true; if its’ because there are no buildings of two stories or more anywhere within a hundred miles (and not even many of those); if it’s simply that there are no chores or routines like laundry, cleaning or the distraction of TV and computers to entice me to stay inside or if while we’re here, in a place that has such ‘absence’ of those 'things' that our culture says are valuable, I’m aware instead of the overwhelming abundance and beauty God has given us from the beginning.
In this ethereally beautiful land, it's easy to see the sky as the gathering place of spiritual forces.
How blessed we are to have the chance to be here.
The sky in South Dakota is unlike the experience of sky anywhere else that I have ever been. I know the skeptics among you are saying, "Please, there's sky everywhere".
But I swear to you it's not like this.
South Dakota sky is omnipresent; its on top of, and surrounding you, at all times – and you know it. There's a 'nearness' to it that makes you reach up, as if you could touch it. It has personae, and moods, all its own and it commands your attention.
You simply can’t ignore it; it's a landscape in itself.
I’ve given up trying to figure out why that’s true; if its’ because there are no buildings of two stories or more anywhere within a hundred miles (and not even many of those); if it’s simply that there are no chores or routines like laundry, cleaning or the distraction of TV and computers to entice me to stay inside or if while we’re here, in a place that has such ‘absence’ of those 'things' that our culture says are valuable, I’m aware instead of the overwhelming abundance and beauty God has given us from the beginning.
In this ethereally beautiful land, it's easy to see the sky as the gathering place of spiritual forces.
How blessed we are to have the chance to be here.
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