I am a tree at the top of a hill and how I got here is soon to unfold. So listen closely as I know you will. For there are lessons learned in every story told. And there are some things even a tree knows.
I know it all began when I was just a lad; a tiny little seed with no place for my home. I was blown by the wind from town to town until I cried so many tears, I nearly drowned. There was a flood and I got trampled and pushed beneath the cold, hard ground. Then skies opened up and the bright sun showered me with love. Next thing I knew, I had begun to grow. It wasn’t too long and I could see again. The sky was bluer than it had ever been. I gave thanks that I could see and soon I began to grow into a tree. Every year I grew and grew. I watched the landscape change but I always knew, if I watched and waited patiently the world would open itself unto me.
There was a family who built a home right next to me. I watched in awe as the family grew from two to three. By the time the young boy was old enough to reach my bottom branch, I was quite tall and strong so my branches didn’t snap. Oh, how it was music to my soul when the boy giggled as he jumped to and fro.
The years flew by and the boy grew tall. I went from a jungle gym to Fort Knox. The nails they did hurt as they pierced my skin but given the chance, I’d go through it all again. For there were nights the boy needed me so. He clung fast to my trunk, with tears on his cheek hiding the bruises he wanted no one to see. The nights they got long as he parents raged war into the night but, as he clung to me he knew it would be alright. We weathered some stormy times. One lightning bolt and I was nearly through but I survived and again I grew.
In the blink of an eye the young boy became a fine young man and his own life began. I watched his first kiss and I heard his fear when he whispered I love you. There was a brief moment of silence before a sigh of relief as she replied, I love you too and yes, I will marry you.
Time has raced forward and the man’s hair is tinted with gray. At my feet, his parents lay. I feel the sadness, I taste the tears, and I look back over the years. I think to myself please, have no fear. For when the journey ends it’s not really over. I’ve thrown some seeds over my right shoulder. With the proper love and care, new trees will grow and offer shelter here. Until that day comes, alone here I stand at the top of the hill where love began.
I must be quiet now for there is new life below. The man and his wife now have a family of their own. They live in the house right next to me and welcomed a new baby to their clan of three. One day this child will grow and my branches will still be strong and will not snap.
You may ask yourself now as my story has been told, what lessons were learned and what is it that I know? I know the sky is blue and sometimes gray and that life itself can get in the way. I know the wind will blow my leaves away but the power of love is here to stay. I know a kind heart and a soft shoulder make for a nice hug when the times grow colder. I know a teardrop signals pain but also joy and I was once happiness to a lost little boy. Yes it is true I am but a tree. Soon, everything I know you too will see. One day there is pleasure, another day pain. Someday it’s too bright other days it rainy and the sun fades away. There will be highs and lows; truth and lies, but in the greater scope of life, everything is a circle, a circle of life.