Coloring

Hello friends. Once again, I must begin by apologizing to you for neglecting you. I had resolved in my mind to blog here at least once a week. And then I watched a week roll by and thought to myself, "I have nothing interesting to write about," and left it unwritten. Another week, and every time the blog would enter my mind, I would say once again, "But I have nothing interesting to write about" and go back to reading other people's blogs about nothing in particular. I have finally realized that none of my entries have been about particularly interesting subjects, and I ought to simply sit down and write. So here am I, to talk about crayons.

Yesterday, I checked my mailbox, also known as the Box of Joy or Despair. Yesterday it was indeed a box of joy. Upon opening my box I found a very large envelope, folded in half, with my name on the front. Not only did it have my name on it, in the corner it had my brother's name on it! This was not just any old letter, this was a letter from my older brother! As you may be able to tell, this is precisely the kind of letter that makes any day better.

So, heading back to my dorm I opened up the envelope to find not only a letter but a generous stack of Disney coloring pages, labeled with a post-it note informing me that I should go and get some crayons. If any of you have not recently had the privilege of coloring with crayons I highly encourage you to do as I did, that is, run out immediately and find some crayons.

Crayons are some of the best things in the world. I would argue that in their very nature they have made the world a better place. Let me examine three of their more wonderful attributes. First, they come in scores of jubilantly-named colors (mine came in a 64 pack including colors such as "Macaroni & Cheese" and "Purple Mountains' Majesty"). Second, they are simply the best possible material for their job; their wax is just flexible enough to be comfortable to hold and just sturdy enough to color purposeful. Finally, they are completely useful; the entire crayon is made of the same colorful substance, there is not one tiny bit of it that cannot be used to color. It is wrapped in paper and when the paper must be torn off, it can be used to color on, or as a swatch! Not to mention that coloring in itself is simply one of the most fun and relaxing activities I can possibly imagine.

Filling in my coloring books, I have been left to ponder the simple goodness of crayons. That's exactly what I so love about them, everything about them is simply good. And I am drawn to the verse in Psalm 145 where David writes, "The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made." I know it's a simple and a silly thing to compare God to crayons, but if I am so drawn to these little sticks of wax because of their goodness, how much more should I be drawn to the God who is good to all? In Hosea 2:19 the Lord says to his people, "I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion." God is after our hearts, and his goodness is simply irresistible.

Truly His,
Caroline