A mere fifteen miles into our trip, we began to spot gigantic green combines in the fields that flanked the highway. Joshua’s awe-struck, “WOWs” cued me to slow the pace and set the cruise control at a mere 25 mph so that we wouldn’t miss a single site along the way. Green tractors, yellow combines, red wagons, and blue trucks decorated the golden brown fields with a rainbow of color. As we meandered the rural roads, the small pictures in our well-worn tractor board books came to life before my son’s very eyes. In two-year-old chatter, Joshua narrated the action in the fields and waved at each hardworking farmer resembling a small dot sitting in the huge cabs of the hefty machines. The further we drove, the more we stumbled upon giant semi trucks parked expectantly along the road, waiting to be filled with the golden fruit of the harvest. As we neared the interstate, I spotted a grain elevator on the edge of a tiny town, and we veered off the highway to watch the “action” as the harvest was transported into huge bins for safe keeping. While darling Miss Maggie snoozed through our journey, Joshua clapped and laughed and nearly leaped out of his car seat in an attempt to smash his little face against the window and see more clearly. 
As we pulled onto the interstate, Josh pleaded, “Mommy, SLOW DOWN. I can’t see SO FAST!” And I marveled at the poignant truth wrapped in his simple toddler plea. Just as the rainbow of tractors became a blur when I set the cruise at 70mph and kept pace with the impatient vehicles whipping along the interstate, so the rainbow of life’s simple pleasures can become a mere blur when I set my mind on moving quickly and efficiently through my days. When I cannot pause to watch a caterpillar crawl or stop to chat with the wide-eyed preschooler in the grocery store aisle, I miss the chance to unearth some of the priceless treasures God has placed in my midst.
When we finally arrived at the pumpkin farm, my wristwatch warned me that our “play time” had been shortened by our tangent along the way. But with a smile, I followed my John Deere Boy to the barn and reminded myself that we had already enjoyed a priceless “field trip” before we’d even arrived. My toddler may not know it, but he’s teaching me a truth that I wish I’d learned earlier in my decade of mothering: more often than not, the JOY IS IN THE JOURNEY!Today’s Treasure: “You will always HARVEST what you plant… those who live to please the Spirit will HARVEST everlasting life from the Spirit. So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time, we will reap a HARVEST of blessing if we don’t give up.” Galatians 6: 7-9
