Growth and time.
I was twelve years old the day I came home to find my daddy planting a tree in the center of our back yard. Little small tree. My young mind could not then comprehend the time it takes to produce a huge sprawling tree. Years would have seemed like a lifetime to me then.
I don't remember, but I'm pretty sure I asked him how long it would be till I could climb it. How long till it was tall enough and strong enough to support my weight. If I could have awoken the next morning to an overnight transformation of that tree I would have missed much.
I now live with my family in the house I grew up in. And look at what my children get in that old tree.
And like that tree I have grown and matured. But I learn every day that I have far still to go . . .
They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper. Psalm 1:3
My gratitude list continues . . .
treehouses and rock walls
ziplines and helmets
running into friends at the store
birthday invitations
t-ball practice
empty mason jars
chocolate chip cake
bug spray
notes from my children
catching him with a can of spray paint
old photographs
painted faces
tulips
melted ice cream
stained glass
open discussion
tears for Jesus
the Jonah class
My list, #'s 603-621.
