Fathers, Sons & Spiders

My oldest son and I both use Instagram.  I absolutely love it. It's a fun way to be instantly creative with your phone's camera (or other shots you've loaded onto your phone) and to share something funny or beautiful or whatever suits your fancy.  One of my favorite things to do is take pictures of a 3/4" tall Luke Skywalker figure I have in different places around the house...

There he is, after having vanquished our house beagle, aptly named Walker.

And now my son comes back into this little story.  Last week, we both posted astonishingly similar photographs within hours of each other.  He's graduated and moved out of the house, so there was no collusion going on here, I promise. Here they are, his above, mine below:

 

My son and I both have a strange affection for these hairy little jumping spiders. They're completely harmless, as most spiders in North America are, but these are oddly...cute.  Kinda like mini-tarantulas. Yeah, I know.  So anyway, I was struck by the fact that within the same 24 hour period, my boy and I both found fairly large specimens, caught them, and photographed them on our hands! 

Sometimes I think my son and I couldn't be any different, but then something like this reminds me that we're from the same stock and that there's quite of bit of "me" in "him".  How strangely alike we are! It puts a smile on a father's face. 

I'm hoping you're seeing the same parallel to another father/son relationship that I am.

There is so much in me that is starkly different from my heavenly Father, sometimes I wonder if we're related at all.  Then, every so often, I see glimpses of His character in me that's been passed on, and I'm encouraged.  I want to be more like Him, and I hope He's pleased.