Missed Beauty

What to do in Orlando when an upside down roller coaster can scare you to death - at almost 62....not a good option - or riding in a slow moving boat with "It's a Small World" ringing in your ears and you have no attachment to anyone of the little ones in the boat? I have been called "child like" or was it "childish" but even I have my limits. So why not go to something safer and with a more mature feel to it? From a previous trip for a job interview to Florida in the mid-1990s, I remembered a lovely museum in a beautiful town - Winter Park, Fla. The Morse Museum houses the largest collection of Louis Comfort Tiffany stained glass in the country. It is a museum that inspires the soul!
Winter Park also inspires the soul. It is a town of lush gardens, crystal clear lakes, and bright reflective sunlight! Tiffany and Winter Park are a compatable match - they both reflect an elegant beauty created by the blending of color and light. As I walked the streets and took in the gallery exhibit I found myself reflecting on a possible missed opportunity. You see, the last time I was in Winter Park I was interviewing for the position of the conference minister for the state of Florida. The office for the conference was in Winter Park. As it happened, I was honored to be offered the position. However, after much paryerful reflection I did not accept the call. Had I missed a rare opportunity to be surrounded by extravagant beauty?
No! Since that visit I have been surrounded by beauty - the beauty that has resided in each person who has touched my life by allowing the beauty of his or her soul to shine in my presence.
"Like pieces of glass textured and toned
held together by an invisible lacing
when made translucent by holy light
shine forth in beauty.
So too it is with every human soul,
sometimes shattered and always stained
and, yet, laced together by the Creator's ahnd!
Do not miss the beauty!"

Bob