I Didn't Wear Shoes Today

I didn't wear shoes today.

I'm pretty sure that whoever first thought of carpet, was standing in a patch of grass with no shoes on. Then the thought struck, "Wow, this feels really soft and squashy. Wouldn't it be neat to have this in my house?"

After an unsuccessful trial period of growing grass on the parlor floor, they decide to replicate it with man-made materials. Boom- carpet is patented and sold.

Or maybe somebody loved their pet named car so much that they wanted their floor covered in furry stuff and called it car + pet. Hm. Nah, I don't believe that either.

Anyway. I didn't wear shoes today. I slipped off the flip-flops (tongue twister!) and padded through our backyard, and it was a delight.

Man recreates, manages, alters, embellishes. But isn't better at making things than God is. Carpet is embellished- "perfected" by man to be more pleasing to the sense of touch, softer on the feet. And through familiarity and uniformity, that "perfection" often goes unnoticed. Is that really better?

Grass is not uniform. Not in color, texture, size, rigidity, pattern, temperature, or consistency. When I walked through it, the blades tickled, the mossy stuff relaxed my heels and ankles, the temperature was strikingly different than the air, even the smell was of the wonderful earthy type.

The point: God knows humans very well. And we need reminders of the blessings we've been given, which is why grass, so soft and inviting in all its inconsistency, constantly reminds me of its presence beneath my feet. Whereas carpet is usually forgotten after a while. Man may seek to improve on God's work, but succeeds only in increasing our comfort while allowing us to forget it and focus on something else. God uses a different angle. He uses the storms and the droughts, the daytime and nighttime, the changing of seasons and just enough "bothersome" things, so that those who choose to see it, are in constant wonder of the blessings and comforts he gives, every day.

That blows my mind. God is so wise. So smart!

Think on the perfections of man. Air-conditioning feels hot after being in it to long. Beds eventually feel hard. Purified water starts to taste listless so we drink diet-crap instead. Couches give us back-pain.

All comfort, that we have forgotten. We grow used to having "perfection" at all times, and eventually the uniformity and familiarity causes us to forget the blessings we have, and crave for what we have not. God's creation reminds us in ultimately harmless small-time pain, that what we have is to be treasured.

I didn't wear shoes today. My feet got some prickles in them, but I sure do enjoy my blessings more now.