broken
A heavy mist shrouds the chilled morning air as another day of transition moves the autumn season forward. A time of fellowship, remembrance and encouraging gratitude filled the room at the men’s prayer breakfast this morning. The wife of one of the long time attenders prepared the sumptuous meal as a heartfelt gesture of gratitude for and in honor of her now deceased husband and encourager to many. We were all moved by her actions and her words and reminded that even the seemingly small things we engage serve often as big reminders of the acts of love we are called to engage with one another. Sitting now in the quiet and warm recliner while gazing out at the near barren pecan tree, I am momentarily distracted by the old dead branch hanging with mid-summer leaves still clinging as though not wishing to give up the season’s change. The branch was broken and the leaves were left hanging because that is how nature functions when life is interrupted. The tree will continue on its steadfast path, but without a pause to ponder and reflect, I could easily give my attention to the broken and unreleased leaves that could easily overshadow the bulk of the picture of life in my view. As an unwitting possessor of Parkinson’s symptoms, it would be easy to lay claim to the burden of the broken neurotransmitters and lose sight of the blessing that is “the rest of the tree” that is on its journey through the season. The broken limb and the attached and unrelenting leaves does not constitute the whole of the tree, even if attention is given it. As gratitude emerges that the broken part does not fill the canvas as the centerpiece of the painting, joy, hope and thankfulness begin to emerge as the backdrop for today’s rendering. We shall see how the brush strokes leave their mark in the light that is gratitude!