Lava!

Long ago my mom worked for a company selling rubber stamps. One year, she earned enough points from her stamp sales to take us on a company funded cruise to Hawaii. I loved it! I was so excited to go horse back riding with the Hawaiian red dirt swirling around us and the hot Hawaiian sun beating down on my baseball cap. At the end of each day, I couldn't wait to fill my tummy with the delicious cruise ship cuisine (I seriously had macaroni and cheese every night for dinner). And I kept my eyes peeled for any sign of the elusive dolphins said to patrol the ocean. There was however on thing I was not looking forward to - lava. One day we got on a bus and Mom said we were going to see the volcanoes. My eyes nearly popped out of my head. What?! Mom was taking us to the volcanoes and LAVA?! I had seen pictures of lava in my books. I wasn't excited anymore I was terrified!

When we arrived at our destination there was not a drop of fiery red lava in sight. There were just a bunch of Hawaiian geese called nene. I was hugely relieved but still somewhat suspicious. Where was all the lava? Mom tried to explain that the lava had hardened into the black rock all around us. I was fascinated but soon I was too distracted by the neat geese to pay much attention to the "lava" all around me.  Still, ever since that time in Hawaii volcanoes and geology have been one of my favorite subjects to study. The amazing power of geologic forces is really quite incredible, but instead of inspiring fear in my little heart, today it inspires me to create. Say hello to my lava bowl! It reminds me of what the lava on Hawaii looked like in my childhood imagination.

Lava Bowl!

Back when I was visiting the volcanoes in Hawaii there was no lava. More recently the lava has emerged once more. I was without television when this was all going down but I heard of the terrible and awesome destruction the lava left in its path. It's like the lava pressed a restart button and everything that lived there had to rebuild itself from the ground up; even dirt had to be recreated!

Ruins by the Sveti Donut in Zadar, Croatia

This past year I felt like a figurative lava was seeking to destroy everything I had worked so hard to achieve. A friend of mine told me that sometimes you build yourself a little house and you are quite proud of what you've done. After all it keeps the rain of your head in the winter and the sun from burning you during the summer. Then God comes along with a wrecking ball and demolishes the whole thing. Why? Because He wants you to build it again but this time bigger and better. In order to do that you've got to start from the ground up. None of the old foundations would be grand enough for the palace God has in mind. In building your old home you learned a lot but just think how much you can gain from the new project. So when the lava of life comes along forcing you to start anew don't ask "why me?" say "try me!" and rely on God. He will always be there to show you the way.

Amazing architecture of a church in Zadar, Croatia

Check the Shop Pottery page to purchase a lava bowl or find something else you like more.