My thoughts are all over the place as I download and process the past week. For this reason, my post may not read as smoothly as others, but I promise that it will be no less enjoyable.

The Gibson Household celebrated Sukkot during what was an unusually warm week of October. The sunshine was amazing, and we relaxed in our sukkah during the day and long into the evening.

Sukkah Shadows

One theme or concept that Adonai repeatedly showed me as I sat in our little sukkah was how fragile human life is. It was a gentle reminder to walk with Adonai and not attempt to bend Him to my will. My faith was strengthened when reminded that with my life in His more than capable hands, who or what did I have to fear?

Through the Sukkah Curtains

The sukkah frame we used this year is one we’ve employed for two or three years now. Admittedly, we were lazy and failed to put our sukkah up one year since the construction of this particular frame. While I won’t make excuses for myself, I am reminded that Adonai is patient with me. As long as I’m drawing breath, there is an opportunity to do better in the next moment.

Golden Sukkot Days

I really like this frame because our son, Joshua, designed it. It’s very sturdy, and still the designer in him wants to create something more substantial. He asked if he could dig postholes, fill them with concrete, and add forms that would secure posts in place. I gently reminded him that his idea would be permanent, and one of the points of Sukkot was to remind ourselves of the temporary nature of this portion of our life. He nodded in agreement and went on to design a sturdier frame under the requirements that it must be able to be dismantled and transported not unlike the original sukkahs Israel used.

Guinea Girls Approve the Sukkah

Adonai’s most poignant reminder regarding the fragility of life came late Thursday evening. I haven’t posted about this on social media because I was so stricken by what occurred that I didn’t know how to process it.

A storm—one that didn’t produce copious amounts of wind or rain—blew our sukkah right over. I was horrified because we couldn’t repair or restore anything until Friday. As Will assessed the damage and ended up dismantling our sukkah until next year, I turned my eyes from the windows every time I walked by.

I never asked Adonai why this occurred, and I don’t believe in signs or omens of ill. I was reminded of the fallen sukkah of David and how Adonai is restoring it more every day. I thought to myself how wonderful it would be if Yeshua HaMashiach returned on Shemini Atzeret or Simchat Torah.

One thing that did raise my spirits regarding our sukkah was our son’s determination to redesign it within my guidelines, and even more beautiful, his suggestion that we use a wood burner to inscribe our favorite passages of scripture into the beams.

Cool Sukkot Evenings

And then, the next morning, we arrived for Shabbat services to learn that Godless cowards had attacked Israel. The enemy opened another battlefront, and believers met the onslaught fiercely in prayer. Believers are soldiers who, at any given moment, are on their knees fighting evil.

So, as the Gibson Household embarks on another cycle of life, studying Torah, preparing for the moedim, and fighting in the many warzones the enemy launches to discourage us, I’m encouraged that my fragile life is, as always, safe with Adonai.

Baruch HaShem!