Open Your Eyes

What do you think of when you see this picture?

Tropical. The beach. The smell of coconuts and salty water.

 It reminds me of riding alongside my mom as we drove in a PT Cruiser Convertible along the coast of Malibu where we could see the waves pounce against sharply cut rocks.

 I feel heat and sand and hear music and smell hot dogs from a road-side stand.

 The gray sky might be an indicator of rain to come, a usual afternoon shower in a hot, humid destination.

 For just a moment, I got caught up in the ambiance of this tree. I looked up and a few seconds felt like lingering moments when I saw this view.



 And then I dropped my head and saw this…

Just below such grand beauty was this scrap-made shack. Old pieces of metal and aluminum banged and beaten together with wood rotted stairs. Matching colors are of no concern here as priority would be a shelter from dust, dirt, and rain.

 Sure. We see a lot in this picture. We can see how man will use easily accessible resources to provide necessary things and we might also notice how it doesn’t take much to have a “roof” over your head. 

This whole moment caught me off guard, as it only lasted a split second. I was mesmerized by the tall, tropical trees that I felt had been absent from my life for so long, and then was abruptly slapped in the face with this teetering shack directly below it.

 How can such a beautiful sight be so close to something so…. so…. ugly?

 It was hot. It was sticky. It smelled. And I got lost in the moment of the trees. Just below was the realness of the situation of most people around me. The poverty, the lack of education, and the loss of hope. The stench, the noise, and the emptiness.

 Am I glad I saw those beautiful branches? Yes.

 Am I glad I saw that crooked house? Absolutely. 

 We have to open our eyes. We have to look beyond what engulfs us in pleasure, comfort, and selfishness. If you have been made aware then you are now accountable. It can ruin your plans, tick you off, and wreck you to pieces but it is commanded of us.

 Open. Your. Eyes.  You love too much to ignore it now.

 “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” -Luke 12:48