Cowtrain

"Every child comes into the world with the message that God does not yet despair of man'"
Tagore


Experiences are flagged in the mind and tagged. Some labeled pleasant and beautiful find their way and get stored away together, ready for collection and reflection on long winters evenings where the warmth of memories provide a welcome fire.
Others are boxed and tagged as comical, where its release into the realm of the conscious instinctively draws a smile onto one's face.
Their are the sad ones that we try to hide in the attic of the subconscious, trying to forget that they have ever entered through our lives.


But then there are those experiences that you cannot name. They simply do not fall into any category.
They are all pleasant, all special, some even extraordinary, but it would simply be unfair to try and categorise them.
I find that most of these experiences come from observing and interacting with children.


This past Sunday we had a family outing (literally). We went for a ride on the Gautrain. This practical and efficient mode of transport, aimed at relieving our roads of  its traffic load and providing the working population with some hope midst the never ending traffic despair, has also become an amusement tool.
We were not alone in our idea. We were surrounded by hundreds other families, ready for a day of pleasure in Sandton (I am proud to say that we were not the only family taking photos of our excursion).


The train ride was pleasant. We landed opposite to a mother with a little girl of around 3 years old on her lap. Inevitably, in the relaxed mood and unlike on underground services in Europe, we started conversing with the mother.
"Is this you first Gautrain experience?"
Looking at the excitement on the little girl's face we expected it to be the first.
Surprisingly the answer was no. 
They have done this before. Yes, many times and she loves the "Cowtrain" as she calls it.


I realised this when we arrived at the Marlboro station and her eyes doubled in size as she was informing us that we will be going through the tunnel now. She new every step of the way.


Upon our arrival at Sandton she did not want to climb off. She did not see any need for breakfast, just wanted the ride back.


Suddenly I understood what Jesus meant when He said that  He wants us to believe in him like children do. Every day our relationship, our faith, our devotion to Him should fill us with excitement and awe. It should be as if we start each day fresh, as if we have interaction with Him for the first time. And when we come to the end of the day we should long to be close to Him all over again.


He wants us to climb on the "Cowtrain" every day seizing every moment, living as if it is our first and last day ever. Enjoy the ride. Who knows you might be buying your last ticket tomorrow.