Sinkholes

I'm often amazed at the way the path we walk every day mirrors nature. I think one of the reasons I've loved teaching science has been the opportunity it's given me to help my students learn life lessons by examining God's unique creation.

Take sinkholes for example. I was thinking about them as I roamed the country roads of Maury County with my dear friend. There is a story (around these parts) about a farmer who was driving his horse-drawn plow across his field when, all of a sudden, the ground dropped out from under him in a newly formed sinkhole. This area of Middle Tennessee is a karst. A karst is an area of land underlaid with rock (in this case limestone) that is filled with little nooks and crannies and tunnels and holes that provide a storage place for underground water. This water runs back and forth in little streams and underground rivers. When the acid in rain seeps through the soil and into those tunnels it wears away the limestone and the underlying foundation for the ground above. After this goes on for many years sometimes, without warning....plop....a sinkhole. (To see this in real time, grab a piece of limestone gravel and put it in a bowl of vinegar....watch for the fizz.)

As I was recalling that intriguing farmer story, I was struck by often that very thing happens in life. We can't always see what's going on underneath the surface so, there you are leisurely enjoying a walk across a beautiful, peaceful field when... plop...a sinkhole!

The good news is you can usually climb out of a sinkhole. The bad news is it definitely delays your progress and you just might have to change your route and take a detour. But, then again, detours aren't always bad things. Sometimes they take us down the road less traveled and into a whole new world.