Photo and Commentary ©2024 by Maylan Schurch
Friday, August 30, 2024
This past Monday morning in a walk in our neighborhood, I noticed an unusual dark streak in the clouds. For a moment I was puzzled, but then noticed the jet contrail to the left, and also the sun, which is farther to the left out of the photo. The sun was shining on the contrail, and the contrail was casting its shadow on the clouds.
It was 10 a.m., which means the sun was fairly high in the sky. I know that jet airliners normally cruise at roughly 30,000 feet. A quick bit of online research tells me that contrails form at these same altitudes if conditions are right.
So what we have here is a contrail, high enough to cast a shadow on clouds which are far lower in altitude. And this is possible because the sun itself is much higher—93 million miles out.
And can you spot another contrail, a needle-thin one in the lower half of the photo, intersecting a couple of clouds? This one must be very recent, and hasn’t had the time to widen out the way the one on the left has.
Okay. What makes this a devotional photo parable? I’ve called this blog “Influence.” The jet on the left is long gone, but it has left its contrail, which has gradually widened out, leaving a dark shadow on the clouds.
It’s the same way with our influence. Think back on the people in your life. Some were kind and generous, even joyous, and didn’t block the sun at all, but glowed with happiness. Others, wherever they went, left behind them a murky trail of anger and cynicism, which managed to poison many relationships.
What kind of trail do you want to leave behind you? A joyful one, right? For three Bible passages on joy, click the link just below: