Freckles

As I was washing my face this morning, I looked into the mirror and noticed my freckles more than usual. Since I have been tanning recently, they have come out more because the formation of freckles is triggered by exposure to sunlight. Most of you know that I hate my freckles, as it characterizes me as being a ginger- pale skin, freckles and bright red hair. As I looked into the mirror I noticed the faded white line on my nose that did not contain freckles and was reminded of a story of my childhood.

Back in the Summer of '92, my family and I lived on Marco Island in Florida for the summer. My Dad was taking a sabbatical from preaching and we lived in a sweet little condo right on the beach. Although I remember it being tough having six of us live in the small condo, it was one of the best summers of my life. My brothers and I ran around catching lizards, fishing with my Dad, and shopping at Piggly Wiggly with my Mom. Now, being from Ohio, I thought that that was the craziest name ever for a grocery store but I loved it. That summer we spent nearly every day at the beach and I was the most tan little red head you ever did see. Although my body would tan, sometimes my face would burn. One day, I remember getting burned on my face and then having a blister form on my nose. I began to pick at my blister and realized that a couple of my freckles were coming off. Not realizing the full effect of my actions, I began peeling the blisters to remove my freckles. My Mom caught me doing so and made me stop, but my full intention was to peel the freckles off of my entire face. That's how much I hated them. Later that summer, for some reason my Mom had a bad feeling and thought that we needed to leave Marco Island a couple days early. Just three short days later, Hurricane Andrew struck without warning and demolished the island. God was definitely looking out for us because our whole condo was washed away.

It is amazing to me how one glance in the mirror can bring back so many vivid memories.