Minnesota’s famed waters

Yesterday afternoon was spent as a happy event on Union Lake one of 10,000 lakes that make Minnesota famous.  My highschool classmate spends her summers at the lake to seek solace in the peace and quiet.  This tradition of “going to the lake” for many from my hometown hearkens back to this same ritual that I found with my relatives in Norway.  Although my friend, PT, is from German background, same difference.  As we went around the lake, seeing the loons (Minnesota state birds) she told me the hometown people who lived in the beautiful “cabins” off from the lake.  Some have smaller cabins that are original perhaps built 80 years ago while others have huge homes, those who reside year round.  A luxury to be so close to a body of water where one can fish but also enjoy a swim or boat around whenever you wish. 

A  sad event on Minnesota’s famed waters yesterday was the bridge collapse over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis.  I have gone over the I-35 interstate bridge thousands of times when I lived in the Twin Cities.  I can picture where it happened, I used to run on the roads that went underneath the bridge.  In fact, my sister and her family live very close by where this tragedy happened and she drove below the bridge on West River Road a few hours before.  Her husband came home on the Tenth Avenue bridge (next one over to 35W) just 10 minutes before the collapse.  The locals knew enough to stay away from this bridge because of the ongoing road construction.  At the time of writing, the rescuers are still diving in the 9 foot waters in order to retrieve about 20-30 people who are still unaccounted for.

Two very different scenarios on the waters of Minnesota yesterday. We should never take for granted the safety and protection we assume from our God and Great Protector.  But we do.