God's Firework Display

     The last six hours had been extremely busy and I was beginning to feel a bit weary from everything that had transpired over the evening. My oldest son, who is growing like a weed, needed some new shirts that did not go up to his elbows when he raised his arms, and some new shoes that did not pinch his toes. I set out with my crew of children, on a mission to find the much needed items, though I was a little apprehensive about taking all five into the stores alone. It always turns into a huge adventure for me and I often wonder if I have lost all sense of sanity at times. Just having five children can make me wonder if I was ever sane at all, but God knows what we need and I would not trade any of them for anything. 
     We went to a couple of stores before we found a place that had some decent clothing my son would wear. Along the way my girls also found some beautiful dresses they fell in love with, so they would look gorgeous as they sing in the girls' choir at church in a couple of weeks. When we were finally finished and had checked out, I went to get them a bite to eat. Benny, who is always hungry and asking for a snack, remarked how he just "could not stand it" and needed something very soon. I am always amazed at how much he can eat and he never seems to gain a pound. He seems stuck at 38 pounds, yet he continues to shoot up in height. I wish it would work that way for me!
     When we arrived home, I dropped the children off with Joe and then headed back out so I could finish some grocery shopping. It was not until 9:45 that I got back home, put the groceries away, and was finally able to sit down for a brief moment. It was while I was checking my facebook that I noticed the comments about the meteor shower that night. Now, I LOVE meteor showers! I have tried many times to view them here in Connecticut, but there are always so many obstacles. Often times, the meteors are only seen in the early hours of the morning, and I am just too tired to get up at 3:00 a.m. to watch a few streaks of light go shooting across the sky. Other times it is too cloudy outside and try as you might, there is no way you can see anything anyway. One other thing that bugs me around here is the fact that it is so bright! The lights of the cars, towns, factories, you name it, drown out the wonder of the stars overhead. I miss the clear, dark, skies of Vermont, where I could lay a blanket down on the ground and get lost in the vast miles of sky above me. It must have been an amazing sight for Abraham to view the sky over his head. The amount of stars he could see must have been amazing!
     So, last night, I saw the posts about the meteors, and the thing that caught my attention was the fact that it was going on at that very moment! I called out, "Who wants to go see some shooting stars? I am going and you can go with me if you want!"
     Basically, everyone wanted to go. Some of them had never seen a meteor so this was going to be new to them. It had been years since I had seen one, and I wanted to see if I could break my record of 32 in one hour. So, even though it was 10:00 at night, we all piled in the van, some still dressed in their pajamas, and drove down the road to the graveyard, (yes, me and my graveyards!) in hopes that we could find a dark enough spot to see something. 
     As I was getting out of the car, a streak lit up the sky right in front of me. I could tell this was going to be good! I showed the children how they could lean back on the hood of the van and get a good view of the sky overhead. It was so much fun! All seven of us gazed up at the sky, ooohing and ahhhing everytime we saw a big, flash of light. We clapped and cheered as if we were watching a fireworks show. One by one our little group began to shrink though, as the cold numbed toes and noses. Joe and Benny climbed back into the car and watched the show from inside. The rest of us cuddled together, determined to see more bright shooting stars. It was an amazing display of God's heavenly fireworks, and the children got to see it first hand. Another memory placed in the mental storage unit in each of the children's minds. This was something they would never forget.
     Overall, I did not pass my record of 32. Caleb and Susanna claimed they saw 35, but I only saw 22. If we had stayed longer, I know I would have seen more. Next time I hear there is a meteor shower, I will bring a big, cozy blanket to wrap us all in and we will stay outside together for at least an hour! Thank the Lord for crazy shopping trips, large families, and shooting stars!  

---