God's Sense of Humor

Greetings Dear Readers,

It occurs to me that many people fail to see that like any loving father, God often laughs at what we do as his children. I have struggled greatly with my writing this year as Avalon tore apart our family by leaving us. She was my first reader; the one on whom I could count to show me where my writing had strength and where it needed retooling. This loss put a painful crimp in my writing for some time.

I reached a critical point two weeks ago when Avalon told me she was actually going to divorce me. I sat in front of my blank page not knowing what to do with the pain through which I could not form words. Later that week I breakfasted with my eldest son, Maxim. He happened to ask me about my writing. I explained how much difficulty I was experiencing and he encouraged me to keep at it.

I am not one to "put out fleeces" or in other words, ask God for a sign or affirmation of his direction for me. Instead I usually search the Word, pray, and ask the counsel of friends I trust. I decided I was going to make a decision concerning my writing by last Monday. I was either going to dig back in full tilt or set it aside for a long time. I prayed about this choice silently, not letting on to anyone that I was considering walking away from that which is a core passion to me.
I realize that so far I have not said much that is humorous. But the Father's laughter is coming. Monday of this week arrived and I had not decided. The college where I teach had held a celebration day the previous Friday and there were leftovers. On the table in the faculty lounge sat a bowl of cookies. (Please note that at this moment I am experiencing an uncomfortable pause of embarrassment) The cookies were fortune cookies. I love fortune cookies; not the fortune but the almond/orange flavor of the cookie itself. I grabbed one on the way out the door not thinking any thing about it.

The thing about fortune cookies is that they are nebulous, general, and vague. Anyone can roll their future into such phrases "Your intelligence will be seen by all" or "Expect an unusual opportunity to come your way." It is very easy to match what you do to the generalization of the fortune. I have always believed as well that one could benefit from the encouragement of these generalizations even if they are non-specific.

I created some ceremony for my sons when they were growing up around being careful to distribute the fortune cookies that accompanied our Chinese food. I would select from the cookies the "right one" for each person dining with us and then we would compare how the generalized fortune applied to us. It provided great entertainment after an excellent meal.

So to deliver on my promise here is the Father's injection of humor. As I said earlier I walked by the bowl and grabbed a cookie at random. On my way to my next destination I simply unwrapped it, enjoyed the cookie's sweet almond flavor, and read the fortune as an afterthought. I stopped, read it again, and broke into serious fits of laughter at my heavenly Father's great sense of humor. There was no vagary in the words on the small strip of paper. It is currently taped above my monitor as I write this. It simply read "You will become an accomplished writer."

I could hear my heavenly Father laughing softly at his little joke which also was a message of great import. I will face the pain and fear I feel as I return to the blank page without my beloved Avalon. I know I have something to offer as a writer and I know that "accomplished" may only mean being faithful to my calling. I will write every day and in doing so honor the love I hold for my Lord, my family who supports me, and my absent Avalon.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn