Mission, Spirituality, Connecting
  

Like many young boys, I had a fascination with fireworks. In those days, you could get real fireworks. I'd heard that a cherry bomb would explode in water. Just how would that work? In my mind, the cherry bomb would sink into the water and go off with a rather muted explosion, due to the shock-absorbing properties of the water.

There came a day when I had a cherry bomb and was home alone. I decided it was time to see how this small, round device would behave in water. I got a bucket, filled it about two-thirds full of water, and set it in the middle of the kitchen. I held the cherry bomb and matches out, ready to light that baby and see what would happen. Just before lighting the fuse, a rare thing happened in the mind of an adolescent boy. I thought, This might not be a good idea! Then a novel thing happened; I reflected on that new thought and altered my plans.

Picking up the bucket, I descended the stairs into the basement and then into the garage, which had a ten-foot ceiling. There I placed the bucket on the floor, lit the fuse and threw the cherry bomb into the water. As I stood looking directly down into the bucket, a different-than-expected outcome began to transpire. The cherry bomb did not sink as anticipated; it floated, its burning fuse bubbling in the water. This new reality brought a new realization: This was not a good place to be. Read More