Just Keep Climbing

 

These two ladders were put out on the curb to be picked up by the city. I seriously doubt that they lasted until the truck came by the next morning. There was clearly some life left in them and someone who drove down the street in a pick up truck would certainly snatch them away. I am sure that would have made the old owners of the ladders very happy.

When I was a boy, I would help my dad paint our house every couple of years. Well, I’m not sure how much help I was to him in the process. I should probably say I hung around under foot while he painted the house. Constantly talking and asking questions, I look back and laugh at how that must have tried my introverted father’s patience. But I loved it - he was a captive audience while up on the ladder.

One of my favorite stories from the Bible was the story of Jacob’s dream of a ladder that went from earth up to heaven. We would read the story and then sing the song about climbing that ladder ourselves. Some of the phrases in the lyrics have stayed with me. “Every round goes higher, higher”, “Sinner, do you love my Jesus”, “If you love him, why not serve him” - these words still come to my mind every time I see a ladder.

I like the image of life as that of climbing. But at the same time, I have not experienced the climb as the straight, upward shot of a ladder. Life has been more of a hike through the mountains, with the ups and downs and twists and turns of the trail. Oh, the movement is upward, just not straight. But the views from the trail along the way are much more interesting than from the rungs of a ladder. The point of it all, I suppose, is that we just keep climbing.

Peace.