Exposed Valleys of the Sea

After driving from my cousins' farm in Ayrshire and stopping to see graves in Kilsyth, my mom and I arrived into St Andrews just in time for dinner, which we had at Ziggy's near Ma Belles. I wasn't overly impressed with my meal because the chicken was a bit dry, but Mom liked her salmon. It's basically an American burger joint similar to Hard Rock Cafe. There was even a shirt Madonna wore on a music video set hanging in the bathroom. Normally I wouldn't go to an American style restaurant on this side of the pond, but I've been in Europe long enough that I don't get good American food often. After dinner, we walked around the town so that I could tell her the history of various buildings and the significance of landmarks like the 'PH' in front of St Salvator's Quad. That night we met a bunch of my friends at Drouthy Neebors on South Street, where I used to go for pub quizzes. It was quite a busy day.

Here are some photos from the sunset:

View of Martyrs Monument with

a bit of the Old Course in the background.

Old Course Hotel and 18th hole at sunset.

Path on north side of cathedral wall.

[Image Deleted: see http://peregrinatorphoto.blogspot.com/]

Sunset with cathedral on the left and

the castle on the right.

The last photo shows where I used to read and relax every evening during sunset. My favorite bench overlooks the castle along a path here. From here I could listen to the waves brush against the rocks, especially during low tide or on a windy day. One evening I read Psalm 18, and some of the verses struck me because of the scenery that surrounded me. The vastness of the North Sea was in front of me, and I had just been thinking about how glaciers, winds, and rains had carved this landscape over thousands of years. Nature should make us feel small so that we realize God is much larger than us. Here's the passage that I read a while back (Psalm 18:6-19):

In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help.

From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears.

The earth trembled and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains shook; they trembled because he was angry.

Smoke rose from his nostrils; consuming fire came from his mouth, burning coals blazed out of it.

He parted the heavens and came down; dark clouds were under his feet.

He mounted the cherubim and flew; he soared on the wings of the wind.

He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him- the dark rain clouds of the sky.

Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced, with hailstones and bolts of lightning.

The Lord thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded.

He shot his arrows and scattered the enemies, great bolts of lightning and routed them.

The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare at your rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of breath from your nostrils.

He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters.

He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me.

They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the Lord was my support.

He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.

For me the most significant verses were, "The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare at your rebuke," because I was looking at the barren sea-floor surrounding the cliffs at low tide. The visual added an extra punch for me. The last photo shows a bit of the shore at low tide. Another bit of the psalm struck me: the speaker says the Lord became angry at the speakers' enemies after hearing the cry of distress; the valleys of the sea were exposed because of this anger. I've never really thought about God getting angry for me, but I find this passage comforting. I just thought I'd add these few thoughts to the photos I've posted.