As I fell asleep last night, I thought about how wonderful and strange life is.

We never know what life has in store for us. Sure, we can look back and see where we think we've been, but that is just a memory revisited for the most part. At any particular time, we don't know what to expect or what will happen. Life happens by chance.

As a child, I didn't know who I would grow up to be. I wasn't concerned very much. One day along the way I noticed I was no longer a child. When that exact moment happened I wasn't paying attention. Of course, I had dreams, but they didn't materialize very often. Usually new dreams came along and replaced previous ones without the advent of reality intervening in-between.

I never knew when I would see someone for only once in my life and maybe never again. I never knew when meeting or talking to someone would be the last time. Sometimes people moved away and can not be found or sometimes they died during the absence. I had no control over those things. It's life and sometimes death that causes the partings.

I never suspected in the beginning that Sherry would become my wife. At the time I first met Sherry I never wanted to marry anyone at all. I knew who I wanted to be. Well, so much for my silly plans, God had his own intentions. Sometimes faith in the unknown is a good thing. My life with Sherry has had many great moments along the way and more are likely in store for us.

I didn't know my only child would be a girl. I didn't know who she would grow up to be. All I could do was the best I could and be there for her when she needed me. Then she found another person to give her heart to and come to rely on him more than me. That moment has no calendar reference to indicate its emergence in our lives. Those special moments transferred to a new relationship and found fertile ground in marriage.

I hadn't expected to find myself at a point in life where the number of questions exceeded the probability of discovering the answers. I knew I had to find some important answers, but I did not know how long that process would eventually take. I found most of the answers, but not all. Instead I decided to discard most of the remaining questions because that was preferable.

Most of my life contained unknown moments. They came and went without my taking particular notice. Only afterwards did I come to accept their impact on my life. Unknown moments are the treasures of my Spirit and something I am thankful for in the time ahead.

Don