“Pop, do you want to play 500 with me?” one of my grandsons asked.

“Sure”. It was just the two of us, but when I was his age, I’d play “500” with anywhere between two and a dozen kids. Generally, 500 is a game associated with baseball. One person is the “hitter” and everyone else are “fielders”.  Points are accumulated by catching the hit ball; 100 for a fly ball, 50 for a one hop, 25 for a 2 hopper, 10 for a grounder, and none for a dead ball. Conversely, if you “call” a catch and miss, the equivalent points are deducted.

That’s the way WE played, but that’s not the way it’s played in my grandson’s schoolyard! Point structure varies with each hit (batter’s descretion) and there is something called “Freeze”! The batter tells one of the fielders to “freeze” and not move, thus eliminating that player from that hit ball!

Early on I realized that I’m old and that there is a new twist to 500. So, I decided to enjoy the moment, to embrace the “chaos” and just enjoy. (That’s one of the perks of growing older, though too few of us take advantage of it!)  After all, isn’t that the purpose of “play”?

And now that I think about it, isn’t life much more fun if we just embrace the chaos and look for what God is doing? Therein lies a glimpse of grace. 

Lord, the world is changing and it scares me at times, confuses me at other times. Remind me that You’re large and in charge. My life is in Your hands. Amen.