Bright Lights

Lately I have been in an introspective mood (see my really weird “Penny” post below). So staying with that theme…

Every morning I take the train to work - for those not in the DFW area the DART train is a mostly above ground light rail system. There is one small stretch though that does venture into the subterranean for a couple of miles – just before making it into downtown Dallas. Heading from north to south, you enter the tunnel after leaving Mockingbird station – you then proceed to the only underground station – City Place, before exiting the tunnel in downtown.

Lately, there has been something spectacular about the exit into downtown. I don’t know what it is about the stark contrast of the tunnel’s blackness and the emergence into what has mostly been over the last few weeks, bright, sunny skies. Maybe its because the change is so abrupt. There is no gradual lighting change that takes place. You go from total darkness (not total in the sense that there are no lights on inside the train, but total in that you look out and see nothing - blackness) to total, amazing light in the blink of an eye. And it is in this blink, that something comes over me that completely energizes me and gives me pause at the same time. It is in that instance that I feel God’s creation around me.

Maybe there is some symbolism here to be found. Maybe the darkness represents life without God and the light is the embodiment of walking in the presence of God – I really don’t know. Maybe it is all just in my mind. I don’t know and I don’t really care. When I come out of that darkness I feel a big smile come on and I get excited about the prospects of another day. I get excited about all that is great in my life. That’s not to say that this feeling lasts throughout the day. Like any feeling, it goes away. Some days it lasts longer than others. The real key is finding out how to bottle that feeling and release it at any time during the day – not just the morning commute.