Dazzle Like Dew! - Denise M. Ford

When we visit my hometown in the summer, my husband and I rise early each morning to begin our days with a walk through the small community. We plotted a route that takes us up by the school, over the soccer field, behind the cemetery, across Main Street, and down the alley from Maple Street where I played when I visited my grandparents. We detour around the historical institute (which used to be my childhood school) making our way from Buttonwood Street to Sycamore Street. There we follow the walking trail across Mountain Road into a shady grove of trees carefully labeled for identification by the local Boy Scout troop. As a young girl I respectfully avoided entering the grove because without a cleared path I would have wandered into poison ivy, poison oak, and possibly poison snakes.

Nowadays it’s our favourite part of our morning walk since it leads into a small, forested area with a creek paralleling the way. After we wander over the wooden bridge the foliage closes in on both sides with the sunshine streaking through selected openings where tree branches bisect and create triangular prisms. Sometimes we hurry to reach this place before the sun’s rays lose their effect on the lingering dew. We slow our pace, remove our sunglasses and search for the shining masterpiece we know sways slowly between the leaves. We’re not following any GPS coordinates for a carefully hidden cache, we’re watching for the glint of light that will alert us to the exact spot. Patience, patience, patience as my mother always said, finally reveals the sought after treasure. There, glittering like a delicate decoration swings a silky spider web. Gleaming drops sparkle and reflect the sunlight; we’ve discovered diamonds in the rough.

I recalled the fragile dewy diamonds while thinking of the upcoming Inscribe conference theme, “Words descending like dew.” I pray that I will continually seek to be patient as I discover the words that will “fall forth and condense” from my thoughts.

When I select my words to share with others whether I write them in sentences, or speak them in spontaneous conversations, may I think of them as dew drops distilled in the rising sun’s reflections. May they light up another’s mood, encourage someone’s spirit, and like dawn diamonds on a spider’s web dazzle like dew!

To read Denise's personal blog and writing website go to: www.walkingwithDustyandDee.com