Before and After

A few of the novels I've recently read have been written in a style of before-and-after, flipping chapters from perspectives both preceding and following whatever event. 

It makes for a captivating read; it also serves to demonstrate the changes in view points about the event/characters/settings. 

These changes can be subtle ("I hadn't realised her hair had started to go grey") or extreme ("looking back, that was the day I knew he was destined to die"). Yet they all, on reflection, are things that can be seen, like the shifting light through a window.

Tracking the evolution of a plot through this format is engaging as a reader, as we move through a story of a set time and place, connecting to characters through the limited scope of actions that are presented on the pages. 

These narratives can make one question the reliability of the characters, as their memories may not be entirely accurate. It also highlights their flexibility and willingness to adapt to their circumstances; and it can become very clear that one event leads to multiple understandings, interpretations, and influences. 

All in all, it makes for a good read! And it identifies an opportunity for reflection into our own lives. 

Unlike a novel with a predetermined outcome, our lives are a story yet unfolding. We have our befores, and we have our nows. 

And we have the opportunity to read into our own lives: moments that we have understood differently from others, our own evolved thinking with new information, a re-evaluation of what was, what is, and what can be. 

Our faith is part of this journey, for the more we learn and pray and experience, the more our relationship with God will evolve and (hopefully) grow and strengthen. Our 'before' is a good start, foundational for a maturing faith and continuing spiritual journey. What a gift that our lives are limitless in the possibilities of growth of relationship with God and all God's beloved. 

1Cor 13.11-12 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known.