A Light Along the Path

This winter seems especially long and dreary. The month of January
is over! One month less of winter, but two more months to go!
We received several calendars as Christmas gifts and I'm turning my calendar page to February today.
This calendar has a Scripture verse at the top of each page and I read the verse every morning when I get up. The Scripture for February reads:

I think about the long road I have already travelled and how desperately I prayed this prayer at different times in my life when I wasn't sure and had to make difficult choices. 

Recently, as I was looking at a snow globe which I put out every Christmas, I noticed something interesting. The small ornament of a girl reading a book which I had set beside the snow globe had a light shining on the page she was reading. If you look carefully at the photo below, you can see it on the open book.

Where did that light come from? 

It seemed like a message of hope for me: 

Show me the right path ... Lead me by your truth. 

After some puzzlement I realized there was quite a simple explanation. The light from the ceiling was reflected through the globe onto the book. 

One could dismiss this as an ordinary occurrence or see the miraculous in it. I choose the latter. What often seems ordinary to us is actually quite extraordinary if we are open to it. We can learn from little children. Because they are so new to this world, they are always amazed at what we have come to accept as ordinary. 

Someone has written so aptly:
"When we grow up we must never forget that hidden down deep within us is our forever inner child. Forever waiting, forever hoping that one day we shall remember it."

This past year I've been reflecting quite a bit on my inner child as I set down memories of my childhood for my grandchildren in the form of a memoir. They each got one for Christmas. Below is granddaughter Sasha with her copy.

God sees the little sparrow fall, it meets his tender view;

if God so loves the little birds, I know he loves me too.