A boy and his grandfather were fishing one afternoon. The water was calm and the boat they were in just floated in the calm breeze. It was a great day for both the boy and his grandfather. The two of them were talking and laughing and fishing. The day gently passed and the fish were not biting. After a while the grandfather began napping and the boy was looking over the side of the boat watching just beneath the surface, a bunch of water beetles were flitting around as if they were playing. Suddenly one of the water beetles crawled up on an oar. When it got halfway up, it attached the talons of its legs to the wooden oar and died. The boy’s curiosity was aroused and he interrupted his grandfather’s nap to show him the beetle. Soon, they went back to napping and fishing and playing. About three hours later, the boy looked down at the dead beetle. What he saw caused him to jump, almost tipping the boat. The beetle had dried up, and its shell started to crack open. Both the astonished grandfather and the boy watched silently at what unfolded before their eyes. Something began to emerge from the opening; first long tentacles, then a head, then moist wings until, finally, a beautiful dragonfly fully emerged. They both stared in awe. The dragonfly began to move its wings, slowly at first. Then it hovered gracefully over the water where the other water beetles were still flitting around. They didn’t even recognize the dragonfly. They didn’t realize that it was the same beetle they had played with some three hours earlier. The boy took his finger and nudged the dried-out shell of the beetle. It was like an empty tomb. As you read this today, be reminded that we are in the midst of the Easter season. The season extends for seven Sundays and can be full of excitement and mystery. In Christian practice we are taught to climb upon the oar of life and die to the old self and prepare for the birth of the new self. This is a mystery of life transformation. We are asked to die to self and transform into the creation that God has created us to be. Things are a bit dicey on the pond of life right now. We’ve learned a new word this Easter season, “COVID-19”. We’ve been given sound advice again and again on how we can protect ourselves and our family from it. We don’t know for sure when all of this will end or how it will affect us personally. This Easter season, hopefully, we will crawl upon the oar of life and begin the transformation to a new life in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I suggest we do this often in our life’s journey. The old must die before the new can be born. We can choose to look upon this season as an ‘opportunity’ to learn and grow, to improve the relationships that are important to us. We can grow in our faith. We can be ‘transformed’. During this Easter season of renewal in our lives and in our churches, let us say good-bye to the old and say hello to the new “dragonfly” we can become.

Blessings on you as you crawl up the oar. Pastors Don & Cindy Morrison, Gladbrook Chapel United Methodist Church (Thanks to Rev Howard Campbell for the Beetle Story)