Sunday, May 25, 2014

Doors

We are working on a new door this holiday weekend for our front entrance. 
It got me thinking of the many doors we saw while we were in England.
This large scale door hangs at St Pauls Cathedral.  I look pretty miniscule in comparison to the massiveness of this wooden door.  Can you hear the creaking of the door as it opens?
Some doors open and shut and got us from point A to point B.  When the door shut, off we went in the black taxi, connecting if only for a moment with our taxi driver. 
How old do you think this door is?  Not sure myself, but it is at Kings College in Cambridge.  It's old!  What is on the other side?   
A welcoming front door.  This is Beryl.  A country home we stayed in while in Wells.  Notice the windows on the door.  Unlike the above door, I could see what was inside.  An antique table with marble on top.  A glass vase filled with a bouquet of white roses, yellow daisies, and greeneries added to the ambiance.  I couldn't wait to enter.    
I love this door.  I love it so much I have this very picture hanging large scale in my bedroom.  A gift given to me from my dear friends, John and Yvonne.  Once upon a time I stood right by this very door while in the Cotswolds.  I often wonder who lives behind that door.  I imagine an elderly woman who is charmed by the quaintness of her village.  She makes her tea each morning and tends to her many gardens.  Fresh flowers decorate her vintage home.  I spent a bit of time marveling at the sight of this door.  It was very difficult for me not to knock.  Should I? Oh that would be rude...but, I really want to... No, I didn't!

This is the front door to the home of CS Lewis.  What would it have been like to knock on this door and it opens with CS Lewis welcoming me in?   I would ask to see his writing desk and we would talk for hours about Narnia and his wife Joy and the grief of losing her, and what he remembers about his mother...
 
Doors.  They open to welcome people in, and  they shut to keep people out.   Front doors are more formal as we knock and wait to be welcomed in.  Back doors are casual.  Usually unlocked and easier to access.  Doors are used to separate and connect us.   We walk through many doors throughout the course of one day. 
As we finish our front door, I think of all those we have welcomed in.  I pray all who have entered, and will enter, feel welcomed.  
  
What doors have you walked through lately? 
Yesterday we walked through the church doors.  On either side of the doors stood two people holding the American flag.  We walked through the doors and took our seats.
During the service we recited the 23rd Psalm
Remember it?
"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.  He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.  He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.  Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff-they comfort me.  You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; your anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever."
 
May I never forget the feeling of gratitude I felt as I walked out of the doors of church yesterday, watching the vibrant colors of red white and blue flowing freely in the morning breeze.  

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