Chapter Twelve

BeLove-d

The idea that my name wouldn’t be covered and my statement in the dirt wouldn’t have been erased by the rain was a pretty high expectation. It had been almost a whole month since I’d visited Cadillac Ranch. I didn’t really believe I’d see my prior mark still in place, but I did hope there might be some remnant of myself left there.

Walking up to the cars, I noticed someone had painted Acts 2:38 in the dirt. Repent.

There’s that word again!

“Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” — Acts 2:38

You are everywhere, God. And relentless with this stuff!

It came as no surprise that the car I’d left my name on before was dripping with new paint, covered up by others’ statements and art. I looked over to where I had written in the dirt, only to see it covered by a big heart. There were faint words inside, but hard to make out. As I stepped closer, I realized it read: “Acts 2:38 Love”

Seriously? At least I know I’m on the right path with this repentance stuff. (Sorry for poor image quality, I lost all the original images)

I went back and forth with whether to leave another mark before I left. Did I want to? Did I even have anything to say? I was exhausted just thinking about it. I shook a few of the empty spray paint cans scattered in the dirt, hoping for one last drop, but they were bone dry.

I was okay with not leaving anything. I didn’t know what to say anyway. So I stood there, staring at the cars. This was my second stop at the very beginning of the journey, and so much had happened since then. It had all been amazing, and now, nearing the end, I found myself holding not a statement, but a question:

Now what?

As I stood there, a man walked up and handed me a nearly full can of paint. Still unsure of what to write, I walked up to the wheel of a car and wrote the only words I heard in that moment:

“Be love.”