Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Chase (05/01/25)
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TITLE: Kites | Previous Challenge Entry
By Laurie Bahlke
05/08/25 -
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The kite is fully in the air, lofting above tree branches and swaying in an open field where possibility and childhood meet. The sky is overcast gray, and the air is cool. I am lost in my thoughts and contemplating if perhaps she should have her coat on, when I hear her shriek and call out, “Grandma, hurry, help.”
I look towards her and see the kite floating away, the end of the string bumping upwards as the wind carries the kite. We chase after it, laughing and stumbling across mounds of plowed dirt. I am hopeful. My arms stretch up high enough to secure the string and pull the kite down. As I hand the kite back to her, I remind her to hold tightly to the string, so that the kite doesn’t lose its way. My granddaughter laughs, “Lose its way? That’s a funny thing to say! You mean, so it doesn’t fly away, right, Grandma?”.
For reasons I can’t explain, emotion wells up within me. As tears flood my eyes, I manage to squeak out, “Yeah, that’s what I meant. I don’t want it to lose its way.”
And then the Grandma lecture starts.
“Just like you hold tight to the handle, I want you to hold tight to what you know is right and true. I want you to hold tight to the love of Jesus and the love of your family. Don’t lose your way in this big world”.
She laughs, “Grandma, stop.”
“I can’t help it,” I say. “Have I told you lately that I love you?”
Without looking away from the kite, she smiles and says, “Yes, like an hour ago.”
“Do I tell you enough?”
“Umm, yeah, like all the time, Grandma.“
“Well, good,” I say.
Moments pass, and she sets the kite in flight once more.
“Way to go, sweetheart! You are doing a great job!”
I look to her hands and notice the string isn’t held in place now just by the plastic handle, instead, it’s wrapped around her finger.
The emotion rises again.
I hope she gets it.
I hope she doesn’t lose her way in a world that can be confusing, overwhelming, and full of half-truths and hurts.
I hope she finds hope in a world that is broken and finds beauty in unexpected places.
I hope she remembers that love isn’t just a word, it’s a commitment to those with whom we share the world.
I hope she doesn’t follow the crowd and instead stands bravely in the face of adversity and pursues what is right.
I hope she doesn’t give in to the message that drugs and alcohol are harmless, and that instead, she learns from those who battle with addiction. I hope she will understand empathy.
I hope she embraces the simple, ordinary things that can fill a heart.
I hope that in times of sorrow, she will be resilient and find joy among the ashes.
I hope she follows the path the Lord has set for her and that she grows and matures in spirit and faithfulness.
I hope she chases dreams, ideas, butterflies, and kites, but mostly, I hope she holds the string that will both ground her and allow her to soar.
I chase many things in life: success, achievement, children, granddaughters, dust bunnies on my floor and countertops, and butterflies that soar across an open field.
I also chase kites that have broken free from their string.
Perhaps that is what God calls us to do. To chase after hearts, supply a string, stretch out arms and hands, and to remember that hope and faith are turned into promise.
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go: I will counsel you with my loving eyes upon you”. Psalms 32:8 (NIV)
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