Second Thoughts – The Empty Comfy Chair

Greetings Dear Reader,

Sometimes I will end the day with thoughts that are important to get out.  Usually I just write them and put them in my journal folder.  I have chosen that on occasion I will share them with you Dear Reader.

In my writing office I have an over sized comfy chair.  The chair itself is worn and ragged but it is covered so that one can enjoy it without pitying it too much.  I rarely use this chair.  Others have used it when they wished to be near me whilst I was writing.

When Christmas first came to live with us I would find her there every morning sleeping.  Both her need and her fear drove her there.  She feared not being available if I had some demand.  This was a ravenous echo of her past that she soon learned to release.  Her need was to know that I was there and that she was really safe.  I am glad both of these things have healed but I do miss her presence.

My grandsons often sit there when they spend the night.  Whichever one awakens first knows to find me at my desk writing.  They know that a blanket and juice box await them in the comfy chair.  The conversation in those early morning hours is precious to me.  The current difficulties severely limit my opportunities for them to sleep over.   So again the chair is empty more often than I would like.

Others who frequented the chair are very gone.  Writing about absent friends reminded me of them.  I have often thought of getting rid of the chair.  I could use another book shelf.   But the space is sacred.  It is a space of requirement.  I may be lonely for it to be filled but that space belongs to God.

It reminds of how often Christ wants us to be content just to be there with him.  It brings to mind my need to make time just to be in his presence.  I believe all of our good feelings come from God.  If that is true then that contented feeling that echoes in us when someone is simply there with us must be his as well.

Like my child or grandchildren I need to find time to just be there to be reassured that he is there.  I need to rest in his presence and be comforted by it.  In real love there is contentment in the context of proximity even if the chair is old and ugly.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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