Unsettled

It is not the first time Boston has been left feeling unsettled, in the midst of tension of protecting one’s family and self from harm as well as a sense of defiance against fear.  Historic Boston is known for a population that standing firmly with strength for what they believe is right.  Again, Boston is standing once again, standing for the law enforcement community and standing against fear.

I am a lover of history, and when I think of Boston that is so rich in history, Abigail Adams is one of the first that come to my mind.  She wrote letters to her husband, John Adams, and shared with him the experiences that they were going through at the time.  She writes of her “heart bursting, and the need to vent with her pen.”  Their beloved home was in the center of a conflict.

Abigail wrote of standing on a bluff and watching the conflict below as it occurred.   That is a little how I feel watching the news this morning.  Not in the immediate conflict, but as an observer who cannot control where the pieces are falling.  Prayers go out for the police officer, the victims, and the families and friends who will grieve the loss for the rest of their lives.  For though I cannot control how this will play-out, I can pray that God will not only end this without further bloodshed and that the healer will start the healing process. 

Heal Boston, mend, and continue to stand strong.  You are not standing alone.  

Dishes and Abigail

   When I was a little girl, I liked doing the dishes just so I could play in the bubbles. Tonight after dinner, I spent a few minutes doing the dishes and was musing about what fun that was. Even now, I love the feel of the water and the bubbles on my hands, the smell of the clean kitchen. Then, my thoughts wandered to Abigail Adams, one of the main characters in a biography I’m reading. She is someone I think I would enjoy sitting down to a meal with and then the kitchen cleaning afterwards.

   Is there someone out of history that you would bring into your life for just a few hours if you could? So you could see them and hear them? Mrs. Adams is one I would love to spend some time with. She was a capable woman, capable of great strength, loyalty, courage, and endeavor. While her husband was away leading the nation during a war, she was back much closer to the front lines of battle. Troops walked past her front door on a daily basis. And yet, she carried on at the farm, writing her husband letters of what they were doing, how the crops were doing, how much he was missed, and her love for him. She had pluck, braving smallpox inoculations to help her children survive that dreadful disease. It must have been something to sit next to her and just listen to the stories.
   Yes, if I could play in the bubbles, wash the dishes and talk, I would love to talk with Abigail.