It was probably twenty years ago. Sure, we’ve had rough days since then. But that one made an impression on me that I think of every rainy season. It was late winter. Everyone had been inside, all 8 of us, back then. And each of us had stepped on one another one too many times that day. By 8:00 pm, I said in my final voice, “It’s bedtime.”

The kids looked at me. And even if they usually tried protesting they didn’t that night. I’m sure I had my apron on backward and my hair frazzled.

I don’t remember anything after that, just tension and a dozen delays. Cabin fever is real.

Well this cabin needed lights out, and it would be at least an hour before I could calm myself enough to sleep.

“Good night,” I said closing their door minus an inch. This is when I’d normally say I love you, but I was struggling. My choice was to love. But I felt like a failure. Would they believe me tonight? I reopened the door and tried to smooth things over, but it still felt off. We were all off. I could apologize, but for what? I didn’t know….

When I walked out for the second time, I started to cry. Nobody said Mothering was easy. I’m sure David tucked them in too. But I headed for the couch.

David joined me. “Want to talk about it?”

“No. Then I’d have to relive it.”

He pulled me into a hug.

“What I need is a walk.”

He pulled back to see if I was serious, then he grabbed his coat and we pulled on our boots, and  walked down the dark country drive. I’d say gravel, but I mostly remember a muddy road that night. We talked and prayed and talked some more. “God could you put something fun in our world. It’s just school and rain and chores.”

“What’s that?” David pointed. Some little light shown from the road side.

I picked it up. It was a glowing bug close to the size of a pencil eraser. Just a few steps more and another one shown on the other side of the road. “David, we’ve got to show the boys!” Rain dripped off my hood onto my face, making me feel alive. Was this God’s answer? Creation from our Creator to bring us joy?

You can imagine the kid’s surprise because in our home, bedtime has only ever meant one thing. BEDTIME.

“Put on your boots and raincoats. We’ve got to show you what God did!”

Those were the happiest pattering of boots I had ever heard. I grabbed a jar. I remember them clamoring in the dark to see the glow worms. David turned on a flashlight to expose a grub with black legs that didn’t look like anything we would hold on purpose had we known how ugly it was. Off with the flashlight.

Two adults who’d lived in Oregon our entire life and the only time I’d ever seen anything like that was my semester in New Zealand. And we just happened to:

• go for a walk that night, flashlights off and
• see something neither of us had ever seen in Oregon, let alone our very own road

Conclusion:

• God delights to show up in our world.
• He likes to be asked.
• Then we need to move on those subtle promptings, no matter how odd, to see how He desires to work.

Go find your glow worms!