Blackberry Patch
June 30, 2024 by admin
Filed under Personal Growth
One of the hidden benefits of buying our home was discovering we owned the woods behind our fenced backyard. My husband is clearing out the brush to create various paths. One thing he isn't clearing out is the wild blackberry brambles. During this entire process we've eagerly watched the blackberries mature and ripen. First we saw the blossoms, then the fruit appeared, and now the mature fruit is ready to be picked. But one thing I noticed in this maturation process was that the blackberries didn't all mature at the same rate. Some berries ripen slower than others. Some of the fruit is smaller than others. Worst of all, some fruit never ripens, but dies on the vine before it ever matures into a plump, juicy, flavorful berry.
Black and White
June 18, 2024 by admin
Filed under Personal Growth
I often long for the days when the good guys wore white and the bad wore black. An incident a few months back reminded me of why. A girlfriend and I had just pulled through a drive-thru when a man walked up from behind my car to ask for directions. It wasn't until he leaned toward my open window that I began to panic. My doors were unlocked and we were blocked in from a quick getaway. If the man really was lost I wanted to help, but I couldn't tell if he was a good guy or a bad one. Where was that white hat? I didn't find one, but all ended well—the man got the help he needed and we were safe. Jesus has a better identification program than white or black hats.
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A Birds Eye View
June 6, 2024 by admin
Filed under Personal Growth
Dancing around from side to side, taking shortcuts underneath the plants to the next row, the bird constantly pecked into the earth, ferreting around for the first meal of the day. Occasionally the bird would stop and “chew” and swallow some undetermined shard but then, all of a sudden, the uncompromising peck into the fertile ground brought forth a prize-sized earthworm worthy of fastidious consumption! Little by little the earthworm disappeared into the contented stomach of my feathered garden guest!
Accidental Love
May 25, 2024 by admin
Filed under Personal Growth
Tomorrow I would turn sixteen. Today, I was running errands with my Mom in her car. I was driving through an intersection when another car slammed into us, pushing us into a telephone pole. My head hit the rearview mirror and split the bridge of my nose wide open. The car was totaled. After thirteen stitches and a citation for running a yellow light, which to this day I don't remember seeing, I found myself sitting at home; waiting for my Dad.
A Degree Worth Receiving
May 13, 2024 by admin
Filed under Personal Growth
A few years ago my family had a big discussion about the importance of college degrees versus life experience. A friend of ours had lost his job and because he didn't have a college degree, was being passed up for a lot of jobs he was more than qualified for. I argued that even though I have a college degree I felt that this man's experience should put him on an even plane with me, and in some instances beyond me. It was interesting. Those in the discussion who had the college degrees felt as I did, but those who didn't have degrees felt that the degree should give me a "leg-up.” I thought about that discussion for some time before I realized where the disparity came from. Those of us who have learned a lot have learned that the more we learn the more we know what we don't know. In other words, our knowledge shows us how much we have yet to learn.
