Thrive!

As the boat rounded the thin edge of the island, all manner of hell broke lose along the bank.

The Jacana were running on the tops of the water lily pads.

We yelled and the guy running the outboard motor cut the throttle.

There were two of them in front of us. One went airborne; the other ran. Across the lilies in long, skipping, gliding motion — lily ballet.

It was a moment of favor for me. To see the Northern Jacana, long-legged-red-and-yellow run on the bright green pads floating in Lake Nicaragua. In seconds they were gone. So was I — too cool.

On the fight from Managua to Bluefields the views from the 12 passenger plane were nice — jungle, brown water, snaking rivers.

In the evening, walking back to our house we noticed Scorpio and the northern cross blazing on the horizon to the south.

We ogled; it had been a long time since I had seen the southern sky. A firefly flashed. The stars flashed. More favor.

We went to bed in a sticky, muggy cloud of heat. It was much too tropical hot to sleep. Eventually I did anyway. I awoke at midnight to a mad rush of wind. I thought that Daniel had turned the fan up to high.

Then I felt the rain on my face. It was cool, fresh and clean, blowing through the screen. Favor. It seemed to wash out of me some of my insanity, some of the toxic thoughts I had gone to sleep with.

When I had been teaching earlier that evening I made the comment that life is difficult. Everyone agreed It is. Lots of unwanted thinking.

When we arrived in Bluefields my luggage was missing. All my clothes, all my bathroom stuff — gone.

Life is full of stuff gone, stuff broken, stuff taken. Life is full of thoughts in the night that we would rather not have.

And life is full of favor.

This morning we sat on the veranda and let the cool and wet wind blow on our faces.

I like the favor. It so refreshing.

It’s bright like the stars.

t’s cool like the rain.

Favor runs on the water lillies like the Jacana.

It’s light on its feet.