Life as I know it.

When it rains, it pours. It couldn't be more true or relevant to life when the faithful psalmist sings of the faithfulness of God. It's more than true when God sees the depth of our hearts and fulfills our every intricate desire. Just about a year ago, as this picture shows, I stood still to be with the hurried dreamers, lazy daydreamers, the go-getters, and even those broken-hearted from their forgotten dreams. 

It wasn't easy to stop and smell the flowers in this concrete jungle. I was always too concerned about finding ways out of the crowd. I was always more concerned about getting to where I needed to be than enjoying the beauty that surrounded me. If I even tried to admire the beautiful architecture or greet people, I'd get left behind, honked at, or just pushed to the direction everyone else is going. 

But the pursuit of our hearts should leave us no choice, but to be brave enough to be among the crowd despite the fears we may have of being in it. We can't let the distractions of this life keep us from boldly seeking out the beauty it has to offer. Life is that beautiful. God has made life to be that valuable that nothing ought to stand in the way of our living it. St. Irenaeus himself said, "The glory of God is man fully alive." It's never a smooth ride through life, but for that very reason we can confidently say that we have true joy and true peace -- and we know true Beauty because we have been in the crowd that has experienced suffering and pain, we have been in a crowd filled with soldiers that fight battles of their own. We do not become sadness, suffering, or pain when we find ourselves in the crowd of life. Rather, we become one another's bearers of every ounce of pain and grief lightening each other's load. We become the bearers of faith, hope, and love. When anchored to God who is the source of all that is truly good, we can be in a crowd and never have the fear of getting lost.

No, it's never an easy walk, but it is a miracle, a privilege, and a great adventure in itself to be among the ones who can leave you behind, the ones who will honk at you, and the ones you never plan on encountering, but happily bump into in life anyway.