The Red Umbrella

I was looking through "photos of the week" online the other day and zipped by a picture of a lady standing in a snow covered Central Park. She was wearing a black winter coat and carrying a red umbrella. I don't know that the wintery scene itself was particularly photo-worthy, but something about that red umbrella against the white snow and leafless trees made it all simply stunning.

I instantly decided I wanted a really nice red umbrella so that I could be that splash of color in the drab winter pallet of black and gray.

My mind flashed to a recent day trip our family took to Metz, France. After we got out of the car and made our way to the entrance of the pedestrian area, we scanned each of the streets to decide which one we wanted to head down. Matt and I both instantly noticed that everyone was wearing black coats. Not a flash of color in a sea of hundreds of black pea coats. The absence of color striking. What if someone had on a red coat? Oh how the picture would change. The black clad shoppers would meld together as one and your eye would instantly focus on that person in red or some other bright color.

The red is so special because it is different, it changes the picture. The red is someone going against the norm of basic black umbrellas and sensible coats. It is someone willing to stand out in a crowd. It is that flicker of life when you look around and it seems everyone is doing the same thing and there is absolutely nothing spectacular about it.

This whole scenario made me think about who I am in a snapshot of life? Am I just another black-coated being moving with the crowd? Or am I a flash of color? What am I doing on a daily basis that brings color to a darkened world?

"For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true. Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness" Ephesians 5:8-11 (NLT)