Duke and I stepped out into the dark this morning. Neighborhood Watch saw us right away. There were two of them, and they wanted to know “who” we were. The Hoot Owls brought an early morning smile, and all I could think was, What a wonderful world.

I haven’t heard a Whippoorwill or a bobwhite in a long time. Can you remember those hot and lazy summer days when nature sang its own songs? Then the hum of honeybees could be heard as they worked the clover, and the box turtle would come for a visit. Have you ever had a black snake to rise up out of the grass and look at you as if to say, “hello friend?” The forest had its own fragrance, and nothing compared to the smell of a field that has been warmed by the summer sun. None of these things have gone away, but the child in us grows up too fast.

Our yesterdays have passed from us, but God has given us today. Sure there are tares in the world; but it is still good. Each of us must choose which we will cultivate; either weeds or fruit. The days can be cloudy, but there has never been a sunless day since creation. The Bright and Morning Star has never failed to dispel the darkness of a long night; and we still believe that joy comes in the morning.

I have seen a compassionate smile put a twinkle in a tear. That simple act lifted a weight off a soul that a thousand angry people with all their strength combined couldn’t lift. “O God,” I prayed, “When will we ever learn that the Kingdom of God is already here?” And he answered: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:3)

Sometimes the child in us gets lost; and then, we lose the wonder of it all. I want it back, don’t you? “I see skies of blue and clouds of white; the bright blessed day, the dark sacred night; and I think to myself what a wonderful world.”