Random Act of Metaphor: A Fireball of Blinding Light

Hmmm, sometimes I have trouble connecting the dots in this rollercoaster thing we call life.

A single day can be filled to the brim with such a disjointed mixture of joy and sorrow and punctuated simultaneously by symbols of hope and fear. It is profoundly humbling to witness how life can swing through such extremes.

Today started out on a high note. It is Lucas Holtom Carnival Day – an annual event in which our church opens its arms to the community with a free carnival in the park. The carnival is an amazing, inspirational event that grew out of the tragic loss of a young child.

Two to three thousand people pass through the carnival in its short, four hour burst of exuberance. Hundreds of volunteers make it possible. A spirit of joyful giving, sharing and receiving blooms in that park with enough good karma to last all year.

I headed down the highway to Hamilton to visit my father after my shift at the carnival. My father had attended the funeral of a friend earlier in the day – a long-time friend who lost his battle with cancer. It unnerves me to think of the human toll that terrible disease exacts each day.

I returned home in the evening and, as usual, called my father to let him know that I was home safe and sound. He told me he had just received a call informing him that another one of his friends had passed away. Another funeral to attend, another loss to mourn, another hole that can`t be filled.

At this very moment, the setting sun is glancing off the window of the next building over creating a fireball of blinding light. It strikes me as a random act of metaphor for the way a single day can burn so bright with both joyful celebration and painful loss. Let us rejoice while we are able for the tide can turn so very, very quickly and with so very little warning.

~ Michael Robert Dyet is the author of “Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel” – double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com or the novel online companion at www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog .

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