Exploring the Bean in Chicago
Nephew, grandsons, and I went into Chicago the other day to play. It was one of those fantastic friendly September mornings when the sun shines, a light breeze blows, and Lake Michigan cannot decide whether to be turquoise or stunningly deep blue.
We’d brought sandwiches and, after splashing in the water at Millennium Park, and being amazed yet again at the Bean, we had a picnic in that shaded gem of a park attached to the south side of the Art Institute.
What greatly impressed me was Gene’s intuitive and gentle patience with the boys. Walking through the park towards Buckingham Fountain, we faced a path circling magnificent flowers. A choice. Gene was right there mentally in the “play” mode. “Which way shall we go?” he asked. And the little guys thoughtfully agreed on a path around the flowers.
Later in the Planetarium Theatre, one grandson wanted to sit way up front. This was not the adult ideal of where to sit. Gene cheerfully let go of his own wishes, “It’s not about us,” he said. “It’s their day.”
On the way back the second-grader wanted a piggy-back ride. Gene cheerfully complied for about five minutes. Which was a long time to carry a good-sized kid.
Gentleness is an amazing quality. It’s humble, undemanding, kind, considerate, and stronger than you’d expect.
Watching Gene interact so graciously with his cousins reminded me how gentle God is. S/He doesn’t push or compete for attention. S/He is just there for all of us.
Wherever we go, God’s gentle presence has been there first, scouting things out, as it were, preparing the way for us to accomplish His good purpose. It’s a good feeling to respond, to move in harmony with that gentle and wise plan.
There’s the fable of the argument between the sun and the wind, as to which was stronger. They decided to have a contest and chose a hapless traveler wearing a cloak as the object of their experiment.
To prove his strength the wind decided to blow the cloak off, but the more he blew, the tighter the man clung to his cloak. When it was the sun’s turn, it just shined. The traveler soon became warm and removed his cloak voluntarily.
Moral: Gentleness is more effective than turmoil and bluster.
What a privilege to know special people who let God shine through their lives simply by being themselves.
O sweet and tender as the dawn,
With mighty power to heal and bless,
Is God's dear gift to all His own:
The happy grace of gentleness.
Ella A. Stone
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