Pink Clouds

I love the pink clouds

in the morning…

Cotton candy in the sky!

It is a day at the fair

upon the sea.

My husband and I just returned from a cruise to the Carribean. We were blessed with good weather, and we visited a number of islands. My favorite was St. Lucia because of its natural beauty…lush rainforests, pristine beaches, and the majestic Pitons. We were able to see so much because we took a catamaran cruise and traveled by sea around the island.

Each island has its own unique vibe. I thought Dominica was lovely and I enjoyed the black sand beach. St. Kitts and Nevis each have their own charm. It is mesmerizing to gaze up at the mountains, capped in cloud cover. In fact, the clouds in the Caribbean are captivating wherever you go. There may be a sudden shower and then the sun pops out. Overall, a mist clings to the mountaintops, and it is almost dreamlike.

St. Croix was our first stop. I visited St. Croix when I was a young girl, and I remember my first glimpse of that blue-green sea. This was my third visit to this beautiful island, and the turquoise water never disappoints!

We returned again to St. Maarten, and it is one of my favorite places. When you travel on a cruise ship, you are never in any one port for long. We spent a wonderful day at Kim Sha Beach. It is the same beach we went to on our last trip! It was just as magical as the time before…

On any traveling adventure, you meet the most awesome people. You get a glimpse of the world from a new point of view. Upon return from each and every trip, I remember the people I encountered and the things I learned from them.

It is amazing what you learn when you really listen to people. Often, their life stories will bring great revelations, a new way of seeing, a new way of reflecting on our own life’s journey.

In Nevis, we visited St. Thomas, the oldest surviving Anglican church in the Caribbean, dating back to 1643. It is a lovely church that sits upon a hill overlooking this beautiful vista below. My husband and I took a quiet moment to sit in one of the pews and say a prayer. It was a prayer of thankfulness for a chance to visit this beautiful island and to learn something about the history of this special place.

Of all the things we did on this trip, all the stunning places we saw, it is this moment inside of this historic church that I will remember the most. Looking around, I could see so much joy on the faces around me. The conversations hushed, and visitors were lost in the moment. Gratitude had graced the hour.

Once outside, a fellow traveler grabbed my arm. “Did you see the caterpillars on this bush? They are awesome. You have to see them!”

She was so excited to show me these caterpillars! The guide explained that these caterpillars liked this particular bush by the church. It is their ‘special place’, he told us.

I will not see the particular butterflies that will emerge from this ‘special place’. They already have a special place in my heart. And in large part, it is because of this traveler on our journey who insisted that I ‘come and see’ this wondrous thing. To her, I was a stranger, and yet, it mattered that I ‘saw’ too. She even led me down the hill to the bush.

No matter where we travel, it is usually the simple things that capture our hearts. I believe that is one of God’s great gifts to us…the appreciation of simple things. On our last trip to Bermuda, I had a similar experience. We were out in a glass-bottom boat taking a tour of the coral reef. I loved every moment, and I especially liked learning more about the coral. But, my favorite moment? It was when all these little fish started jumping in this blue-green water. I took so many pictures, and yet, I could not replicate in a photograph the grandeur of the moment.

God is good. He is always good. Each and every day, there is magic all around us. There are fish that jump in a bright blue sea, and caterpillars that will be butterflies. There will be special people who call out to us because they don’t want us to miss the magic.

I did not get a picture of the caterpillars, because I did not want to be late for our open-air bus ride home. Everyone was already climbing aboard. As we rode along, the fresh breeze on our faces, I thanked God for the gifts of the day, and the simple things that bring so much joy to our lives. On the black sand beach in Dominica, the first thing I saw on the beach was a little pink shell, and a small white piece of beach glass. I love sea glass and pink is my favorite color. You might say that this was simply coincidental. I don’t think so. God loves to surprise us with happy things, and He does know us best.

Yes, God does bring us gifts each and every day! How wonderful it is when those gifts are shared, and we remind one another of God’s unending blessings.

Psalm 31:19: “Oh, how great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you; which you have prepared for those who trust in you in the presence of the sons of men.”