All Beautiful The March Of Days

I for one, love the old hymns, and think they have a lot to say to us in this new, fast paced world of the love of generations gone by for our Lord and King.
Some of the words are amazing, and so perfect for certain situations, as is this one today as SW MN is bracing for 15 inches of snow and howling winds that will shut down this area for days right around the Christmas holidays. See what you think of this beautiful hymn written in 1900 by a woman named Frances Whitmarsh While:

All Beautiful the March of Days

All beautiful the march of days, as seasons come and go;
the Hand that shaped the rose hath wrought the crystal of the snow;
hath sent the hoary frost of heaven, the flowing waters sealed,
and laid a silent loveliness on hill and wood and field.

O'er white expanses sparkling pure the radiant morn unfolds;
the solemn splendors of the night burn brighter than the cold;
Life mounts in every throbbing vein, love deepens round the hearth,
and clearer sounds the angel hymn "Good Will to Men on Earth".

O Thou from Whose unfathomed law the year in beauty flows,
Thyself the vision passing by in crystal and in rose,
day unto day doth utter speech, and night to night proclaim,
in ever changing words of light the wonder of Thy name.

How Time Flies

O Time

on golden wings you fly

more rapidly days pass me by

and leave me wondering why life is so fleeting.

Only so much time in every day

and precious moments slip away

to become the stuff of memories dear to me.

If I could slow things one gentle hour

and gather close into my bower

those precious faces whose smiles are life to me

I would thank the Lord with every breath

and praise Him every day I'm left.

and cherish those moments with all I have in me.

Anyhow, so there is a little poetry off the cuff, not so great and I will probably tweak it a little later, but it fits my mood. It just seems that with every holiday comes a grain of sadness....maybe I am being maudlin in thinking so, I mean, I have so very very much to be thankful for. But as each holiday passes by I am again taken by how quickly life just flies by.
Anna will be 10 years old just a few weeks after Christmas. My senses reel each time I think of that. I know we are about to embark on starting all over again, this time with two instead of one (praise you, Lord), but it sure does not seem that long ago that we brought that 3 lb 14 ounce, 3 month old bundle home from the hospital. Or that she walked, talked, or rode her first bike. Where did those years go?
Kurt and I have been married 12 years, going on 13, and I tell you what, it seems like yesterday that we were cheering on the Broncos in the 1997 Superbowl---pre-kids, and pre-Minnesota days. We have each changed a little as the years pass, but it has been less drastic than I expected. Honestly, I used to think life ended at 40. Now that those years are fast approaching, I am thinking maybe 80 was a better estimate. Am I the only one who feels like a somewhat 25 year old stuck in a body that seems to just keep getting older around me? I long for the day this old body is renewed and I am in the best one yet, hanging with my
'peeps' and my Saviour up in Heaven.
Lastly, this holiday means so much to me. The birth of my Saviour---the one who came to earth to give his life for mine. I often think of my dad this holiday--gone now for 7 years. To this day I am not sure where his heart was at when he died--everything was so sudden and all, but I can still hope, and for that, I am thankful. Funny how someone can pass on, but in your dreams, and in little things memories will pop up that make you smile through the tears. I can still see his arms, and his hands....hear his laugh, hear his voice. I can still smell that Dad smell--his aftershave and other things. He used to write a lot of poetry when I was a kid--actually both my parents did, and we all sang together. Funny how long ago those days seem to me now, when so many others seem like yesterday.
Anyhow, so time keeps speeding on, on fleet feet. Before we know it it will be the middle of March and we will be holding two more beautiful Estey girls in our arms, and praising God. So I guess I will just tuck those precious memories away, lock them up, and share them with all of my daughters so they can live on in the hearts of a new generation.
Because even if time speeds forward, God always gives you things to look forward to in those coming years.