A baby duck's day at the lake...

Beautiful day on the lake. Of course any warm and sunny day on the lake in February is a nice day, an unexpected surprise. Nothing as relaxing as God's creation.

As Jon unloaded the kayaks and all the gear that goes along with a day on the lake I enjoyed the scenery. The wind was pretty strong so the breeze coming off the water was a bit chilly. I wondered if I had dressed too lightly hoping that it might be like the day before of 72 degrees. There weren't any other people around at the time but that soon changed.

We paddled across to the opposite bank, it was sunny there and offered a more inviting atmosphere for the first fishing of the day. It granted me a feeling of warmth. I know I liked it better over there and we hoped the fish would too...after all the water was still very cold for fishing.

We worked our way around the lake...yes I caught a fish, the first fish of the day thank you very much. Jon doesn't mind. He is happy when I catch fish. He is happy when I do the things he loves.

As the morning wears on the fishing is slow but the activity around the lake is picking up. There are horse trails and hiking trails all the way around the lake. All the signs there say "horses have the right away" isn't that interesting? Made me wish I was a horse :)

The conversations carry across the water of parents talking with their children. It warmed my heart to see so many families out enjoying this day together. Some people were there alone...walking or running...some came with a child and others had many children. I couldn't help but remember the days when our kids were smaller and what it was like to take them somewhere like this. When they would follow us around like baby ducks.

I wish I had known then what I know now. I wish I had encouraged them more to explore...run...jump...just have FUN!!! Those days are so short, so few. I wish I could tell these parents that. I heard so may times throughout the morning, "stop", "don't", "quit", 'come back here".

Some parents were having fun with their kids and some parents acted as though this was hard work. Oh to be able to tell them these young years are the easy ones. These are the years when their biggest pain my be a skint knee or a bike fall. Mama knows how to kiss that and make it all better. Nothing like the years to come when mama can't fix it anymore.

I guess we really do need to go through this thing called life one step at a time. It might be overwhelming if we knew in advance what the future might hold. All we need to know is WHO holds the future. Guess we should always follow Him around like the baby ducks...

How precious is your unfailing love, O God!
All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings.
Psalm 36:7

"I heard a story recently about a hen that apparently perished in a barnyard fire; but after the rubble was cleared out they found, under that hen, the baby chicks, alive. The mother's wings had protected those little ones; she had laid down her own life, and those little chicks under the hen were safe and were preserved."