I love the change of the seasons. This morning when I went out for a walk along the paths in the wood at the back of my house it smelt of Autumn. I’ve tried to think of ways of describing what I mean by that but the only way I can do it is to describe the pictures that are created in my head. I’m sure that Sue would be able to give it a description that would be suitable for any perfume, but I’m a man and we can’t even get our heads around the different types of colour (what is mauve anyway) so smells are a little out of my league.

So here are my pictures.

The smell of autumn makes me think of walking around Tarn Howes, taking in the infinite multitude of brown and gold. It makes me think of walking through small mountains of paper crisp leaves, kicking them into the air and watching them float their individual paths to the ground. I can see those same leaves swirling around, like thousands of tiny kites abandoned to the wind. I can hear the first crunch of frost under my feet. I can sense my face tightening in the glare of a cold crisp autumn sun, making me feel alive in a way that the warm sun never does. I can feel the smooth dark chocolate brown of a conker fresh out of its skin. I can see those deep red berries. I can taste those brambles and those apples warm, tangy and sugary hiding beneath a wonderful nutty crumble and covered in custard. I can see that deer revealed now that his cloak of vegetation has been removed. I can see the thousands of starlings swarming in a mass of black ready for departure to a warmer environment.

I don’t think I have a favourite season, I love the transitions between them.

There is a time for everything, a season for every activity under heaven.

A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest.

A time to kill and a time to heal. A time to tear down and a time to rebuild.

A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance.

A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones. A time to embrace and a time to turn away.

A time to search and a time to lose. A time to keep and a time to throw away.

A time to tear and a time to mend. A time to be quiet and a time to speak up.

A time to love and a time to hate. A time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3

One of the nice things about being a bit of an unknown on the Internet is that I can leave the comments on this blog wide open and allow anyone to comment. I get comments in all sorts of ways outside the blog comments as well. Sometimes people I know actually talk to me, but I also get comments coming through on email, IM and on flickr. It’s great to receive your comments; thank-you for making the effort. It means a lot to me that people actually read what I write and that the meager offering mean something to them.

The main purpose of this blog is to allow people to connect with the things that I regard as important and worthwhile. We live in a society that tries to rubbish and degrade everything and I wanted to be one of the people that stood against that attitude. I’m not trying to be an ego-maniac I’m just trying to put out there what I have been given.

Bless you for your contributions and comments, they really brighten my day.

(I hope no-one thinks I am writing these items in order of their priority in my life because it would give you a really false view of the things that I regard as import. I write them when I feel the muse coming to write about a particular topic.)

“What is the purpose of my life?” It’s a really important question. It doesn’t always manifest itself in those exact words, but the root issue is the same. It’s a question that people ask at different times of their life. I was 17 when I first asked the question but for most people they seem to reach the question when they are in their 30’s. It creep up on people and no-one tells them that they are going to face it sooner or later. Even if someone did tell you that it was coming, I am not sure that anyone would face the question before it arrived.

When we are young we can barely see beyond the next big event in our lives. Even if that big event is only the next weekend, or the activity we are going to do that evening.

As we move into teenage life our time-frame broadens a bit, but not that far. We might be able to think as far as passing a qualification, but the thought of anything as grand as marriage and children is well beyond most teenagers. Most teenagers I know are looking as far as passing their driving test.

Most people go through radical changes in their twenties; they may get married; they may get a qualification; they may have children; they may get a job; they may buy a house. All of this activity leaves little time to think about the purpose of life, that’s for old people.

Through all of this a few realise that there is more to life; they seek a purpose and some even find it.

It is not until people reach their thirties that many of them start asking the question ‘why?’. Why did I bother? Why did that happen? Why didn’t that happen? Many people don’t even reach the question in their thirties but certainly many of the people I know do.

In the Bible there was someone who decided that they would try every part of life in order to find it’s meaning. He came to this conclusion:

“I was a wise teacher with much understanding, and I collected a number of proverbs that I had carefully studied. Then I tried to explain these things in the best and most accurate way. Words of wisdom are like the stick a farmer uses to make animals move. These sayings come from God, our only shepherd, and they are like nails that fasten things together. My child, I warn you to stay away from any teachings except these. There is no end to books, and too much study will wear you out.

Everything you were taught can be put into a few words: 

Respect and obey God! This is what life is all about.

God will judge everything we do, even what is done in secret, whether good or bad. “

I regarded it as a blessing is that I found the purpose of my life when I was 17. I did quite a bit of living before that point and I came to a place where I knew that none of the living was worth anything. It was at that time that I had a personal encounter with God. I don’t have the words to explain how that felt or even the mechanics of what happened; I just know that I met with God. From that point on I have known that the purpose of my life is to be an apprentice of God; to ‘respect and obey’ Him. The rest of my life has been framed within that single purpose.

The reason I write this blog is framed within that purpose.

The way that I am a father and husband is framed within that purpose.

The type of employee that I am is framed within that purpose.

My leisure time is framed within that purpose.

This purpose is the ultimate purpose upon which all other worthwhile purposes are built. I’m not talking here about a cause to champion or an aim to fulfill, I’m talking about a relationship between me and God.