I saw A Bolt.
One bolt.
It was smaller than a dime. I was at the gigantic Mall of America, riding a merry-go-round with my kids, and fighting dizziness. The world was spinning, colors flashing, noise bombarding, and I was feeling woozy. I grabbed a horse, but it was charging up and down as well as spinning around the frenzied mall. A question briefly crossed my mind: Did seasick moms ever fly off the merry-go-round while standing watch over their kids who were buckled in atop the colorful animals?
Because I didn’t want to be the one that did.
Suddenly, in the middle of the cacophony, I remembered some sage advice I learned on a similar seasick moment on a sailboat in the Pacific.
Find one stationary thing on the horizon, and keep your eyes on it.
I scanned the MOA, searching for something, anything, that was unmoving. But EVERYTHING jumped, flowed, charged, flashed, and spun. Until I saw the Bolt.
The bolt was screwed into the center of the merry-go-round, where it faithfully and quietly stayed. It seemed to hold the whole merry-go-round world together. I kept my eyes on that bolt the rest of the ride, and although the entire mall world was spinning and racing around me, my equilibrium stayed balanced. My spirits soared! I had found balance! For one ephemeral moment, I became transformed into a Prima Ballerina. I floated above heavenly clouds of misty tulle, spinning on my toes in graceful, balanced perfection, far above the whirling crowd!
Thank you, Bolt.
I’ve never been en pointe before.
Because I focused on One Bolt, I went from middle aged mom, spun out of control, to Odette the Swan Princess.
Today when my world starts to spin out of control, I’m going to remember to find One Bolt, and keep my eyes on it.
God is my Bolt.