Somewhere there was the perfect time and place.  She convinced herself of that.  Clung to it.  Watched that thought threaten to slip through her fingers and fall like so many drops of water.  She was ashamed of herself for holding onto that dream.  Scolded herself for it, but when the morning sun rose, the hope would rise inside her right along with the golden glory.  All day she would fight with that hope, push it down, allow it to rise, tear it to pieces, patch it back together.  But in the evening when the sun set and the coolness settled over the land, that hope still haunted her.  Yes, there was a perfect time and place, had to be.

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It took her much time and prayer before she realized that what she sought was possible.  Yes, there was a perfect time and place, only it wasn’t with whom she’d expected.  No, it wasn’t what she’d expected…it was far better.

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Everyday, she took long walks through the fields and woodlands.  Why?  Was it the glories of nature that accosted her whenever she escaped from all the busyness of domestic life?  Maybe.  Was it the tawny deer, the newly mown hay, or the free cries of the little birds?  Maybe.  But if you’d asked her, and if she’d answered you truthfully, she’d have told you, she went in search of something far more glorious than the amazement and wonder nestled in the grass and trees of the countryside.

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She’d have told you – She went in search of an encounter with the King of her heart, the God of creation, her best friend, confident, protector, defender, and wise counselor.  If she’d been truthful and open, she’d have spilled the intimacy she shared with her Savior, of His sweet and precious love, of His seeking her and her meeting Him.  Ahh…yes, if she’d been truthful, she’d have told you.  But, she was a quiet girl, concealed all these things in her heart, like the Mary of so long ago and waited.  She realized the fragility of something this precious.  Realized her own passions and willfulness could destroy all of it in a moment.  So she hid these thoughts from the world.