"Trees and Me"

This week's blog is by Dr. McKechnie's

daughter, Sheri Joseph.

I guess the answer might depend on who’s in charge of raking your yard, but is it me, or was this fall gorgeous?  The way the colors changed in the trees: gold, red, shades of purple, yellow, bright orange, I thought it was beautiful.  I loved watching the children throw leaves at each other and play tag using a huge pile as “base”.  But eventually, I get a little bummed out when I see the foliage is gone and Charlotte’s trees seem stripped.  As I had this one sad, deep thought while staring out the kitchen window eating the remnants of a burned pop tart, I noticed one of our neighbor’s huge oak trees was missing a limb.  I’d forgotten that last spring the dead limb had to be trimmed and now, with all the foliage gone, saw the scar.  The tree stands tall and proud just like a lot of others trees in Charlotte – always seemingly at risk of the dreaded Canker Worm, concrete or careless developer, but standing nonetheless.  My husband, Michael, and I had to make some decisions regarding a huge dead tree in our yard.  It was once a real stunner, but now, its slow sad death has caused us to shell out some serious dough to have it removed and pay extra to grind the stump.  Super.  I asked Michael if that was going to be my Christmas present and he just laughed.  But since its one ice storm away from making our house a memory, I’ve gotten over it.

Why do I tell you about all this?  I’m not a tree hugger.  I just see a parallel in the trees and the state of our world right now.  We’re entering into a “season of giving” as it’s usually called and the predictions are grim. Not many people seem like they’re in the mood to give or celebrate.  I can’t blame them, everywhere we go, the doom and gloom follows us. It’s enough to make us turn inward and hunker down and suffer through, but I look at the trees around us in this great city and I wonder if there isn’t a real lesson there.  When we are laid bare, all the pretty leaves gone, who are we?  Are we more giving, compassionate and kind?  Are we selfish, negative and angry?  What scars are exposed?  What needs healing?

I received an e-mail the other day about some 2^nd grade teachers in Billingsville Elementary who pulled two volunteer moms aside and told them that a lot of the children were coming to school with no underwear or socks. The teachers were asking the volunteer moms to forgo plans for a class holiday party and find a way to get underwear and socks instead. That news brought me out of my own personal fear-fest and broke my heart.  All around us, people are struggling.  There is always blame and uncertainty to go around, but I believe our greatest strength is shown when we come out of ourselves to help others.  CS Lewis said, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

As we go into the Advent season and put up the Christmas tree, I wonder what God is trying to shout at me.  What message was I ignoring in all the “good times” and when I finally hear God, will I even stop to listen?

My prayer for me, for you, our children, for our city, our country and our world is that we will hear God speak to us and when our lives and the lives of others are laid bare, allow God to re-plant the true joy of this season in our hearts.  Merry Christmas!

Peace,

Sheri Joseph