Inside the Visitor's Centre in Williams Lake
I am just an ordinary guy, and just like the rest of my specie, I am not at
all difficult when shopping for clothing. The first pair of pants that fit, I
buy. Unless they look too feminine on me, that is; like if they are pink or have
a bright floral design. A t-shirt is just a t-shirt, so to me they are all the
same. I try to avoid wearing those incorporating swear words and obscene
pictures, however! But there is this one item of clothing that I dread shopping
for:
SANDALS!!!
For some reason, most of them out there were intended for men whose feet aren't
designed the same way mine are. There is always something wrong with them: a
bump in the wrong side of the sole; narrow toes that cause that particular part
of my foot's anatomy to turn an unnaturally purplish hue; a tightening at the
front of my ankle; a scissor sharp outcropping that negatively affects the back
of my heel…
When I finally find a pair, I always feel like I've defeated a major dragon.
Imagine my anxiety at the beginning of the summer two years ago when I realized
that my sandals were worn out! How was this possible? I had treated them with
loyalty and utmost respect! I mean, I had kept them in the top of my closet! How
could they fall apart after just twenty-five years of such pampering? Aren't
sandals meant for a lifetime?
I still can remember buying that pair. I was about to move away from my home
country, and I had spent all day looking for them. After visiting every possible
shoe store in my hometown, I was becoming a tiny bit discouraged. My cousin, who
was shopping with me, was way beyond discouraged. In fact, I think she would
have thrown me into the nearest garbage can if she could have lifted me that
high. But I couldn't help it. Every pair I tried on were either uncomfortable,
the wrong color, or they showed too much of my foot! (Can you believe how people
wear sandals that show ALL of their foot? How indecent!)
There was only one shoe store left, and to anyone's disbelief, they had just the
pair. They were comfortable, they were the right color, AND they covered all but
two tiny slits of my foot! Needless to say, I purchased this pair and proceeded
to cherish them forever. After all, I wished to avoid another experience where
my family members were tempted to throw me into the garbage!
But I found myself back at it; and instead of my impatient cousin, I was now
show-shopping with my two strong, impatient sons! They WOULD be able to throw me
into the garbage! Seeing no cans around however, I relaxed a little, and with
inserts in my hand, I began walking up and down the aisles of Costco. What a
relief it was to find just the perfect pair, right there in that first store!
They fit me perfectly, they were the right color, they accommodated my inserts
nicely, AND they didn't show too much of my foot! Wow, that was too easy!
Imagine my despair when, a few weeks later, I discovered that we had lost one of
those precious sandals! I was ready to strangle someone! How could something so
valuable be lost!
It was with dread that I again took up my search for the perfect pair of sandals
this year. I first went to the same store where I had purchased that last
perfect pair, but they didn't have anything this year that fit my rather complex
list of specifications. None of the local shoe stores were of any help, either.
Eventually I found a pair in Rochester, NY that fit all but one of my criteria:
They put me in the ideal situation for inviting those unwelcome guests called
blisters!
I had to fly to British Columbia to finally find a pair, in an obscure quaint
town called Williams Lake, in a Canadian Tire, of all places! Our visit to that
store had not been motivated with my feet in mind, but to locate a cooler for
the food we had just purchased for our trip. But in passing the shoe display, I
noticed a pair of sandals similar to the ones I had seen in Rochester. There was
just one pair left, and what good fortune! They were just my size! And to make
matters even better, they were on sale, 50% off!
There was only one problem. Although those sandals had just the right number of
holes for me, my kids seemed to think they weren't sandals at all, but sneakers
with three narrow breaks in the fabric on each side! For some reason they refuse
to call my new shoes sandals! Instead, they call them "shandals"!
Kids!
Reflecting on this adventure, I discovered that everyone's search to fill the
inner hole in their hearts leaves them wanting. Workaholics, addicts, cherishers
of pet sins, churchperformanceaholics, friendsaholics, spouseaholics,
musicaholics, bookaholics, anykinfofaholics, all feel that something is not
quite right, that something seems to be amiss in their lives. And the search
goes on.
Only One can perfectly fill this inner hole: "You have made known to me the path
of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at
your right hand." (Ps 16:11 NIV); "Oh! May the God of green hope fill you up
with joy, fill you up with peace, so that your believing lives, filled with the
life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with hope!" (Rom 15:13)
Only One can give us a real purpose in life! Our search ends up perfectly
satisfactory in Him: "For everything, absolutely everything, above and below,
visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels - everything got
started in him and finds its purpose in him." (Col 1:16 The Message)
P. S. Are you desperately searching out a pair of sandals? Have you tried a
quaint little town called Williams Lake in Northern BC?
Nothing is too far away to fulfill our need. Or are there exceptions?
Rob Chaffart
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