Listening to the Wind

"Hey God! You there?"

A gust of chilly wind blows through the Palm Trees outside the open windows.

"Fine!" I snap, "You're here! No reason to blow cold!"

The wind subsides and the Palm Trees stand at attention.

"Thank you," I sarcastically say.

A puff of wind blows out one of the candles lit on the table.

"Jesus Christ," I mutter, relighting the wick, reminding me being in the Auschwitz and found two candles under a Jewish Prayer stone on a cold winter day. One was lit ... the other wasn't. The only people in the entire Concentration Camp was Bill Berry (not the former drummer for REM but the other one) and he was nowhere around. I took the lit candle and shared its flame with the other ... and at that moment a cold wind blue out the first while the second blazed.

It was a pretty Holy moment in my life.

"What did you bring that up for?" I ask God. "I wanted to ask you something else."

The house is deadly silent.  The dogs and cat are asleep. The sun is covered with a blanket of clouds so it's muted and subdued. Outside the wind picks up again and large Banana leafs dance wildly.

"I wish you're talk out loud a little more," I complain taking my seat again at the table.

The wind dies again.

"Aren't you funny?" I say taking a sip of my drink.

All remains calm though all is certainly bright.

"Listen," I press, "why does everything have to be so hard? We're busting our asses here trying to make things work, in no small part for you, but Holy Mother of God, we just seem to fall further behind."

The response is as loud as the Pork Chops I have thawing on the kitchen counter.

"Hmmm," I sigh.

A bird chirps outside.

"That's it?" I laugh.

Then I spy my neighbor Al stop his bicycle for his daily visit to our neighbor Scott who is dying. Hospice is a regular visitor as is "Meals on Wheels" but every morning Al checks on Scott, staying for 10 minutes or so.

What's funny is Al's an Atheist.

"Wait!" I suddenly snap back to God. "What are you saying? Just keep on keeping on?"

The wind blows ... the Palm Trees and Banana leafs wildly dance ... as do the flames on the candles.