There is a bench behind the pond. It backs up to the edge of the woods and faces the mossy bank where koi gather and turtles prefer to sun themselves in the afternoon. As I walk around the soft trail, I peer over to see if the bench is occupied. It never is and I am always surprised. Who wouldn’t want to sit on that bench and be with God and His creation for a while?
I tread along quietly but the frogs know. They spring into the water as I pass, sometimes blurting a fearful, “creeak,” their watery plops making an impromptu melodic scale. Plip…pleep…plott…plut…blup…. Occasionally I’ll hear a long “shhhh” in the grass and then an awkward splash. That’s when I know I’ve disturbed a snake, waiting to feast on one of those musical frogs.
This bench is a place of centering and peace for me. I watch the sun shimmer in the pond and turtles make dusty trails in the brown water as they hurry away. I’ve been audience to a bride posing for photos on the other bank and a mom posing a little one with a “2” balloon at the gazebo on her special day. I’ve listened to a catbird on a branch above me sing a song I wish I knew and I’ve been drawn to the pond, frozen and snowy, and walked away on it with awe. God is there and there and there. He is in all of it. I am grateful. I just want to be there on that bench with Him and His world and receive.
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Psalm 46:10-11
Meeting God at the Park 