Continue Quietly
I’m in awe of the breathtaking silence of winter. A beautiful pause, a timely reset that nature ushers in.
And to be sure, Arkansas is no Colorado - there’s no skiing or snowboarding going on here. Not even snowmen or snowball fights to speak of.
It’s quiet.
I can only imagine how the trees feel.
Just six months ago they were abundant with life! Richly green, glorying in their breadth and strength. The biggest and most plentiful trees surely were the talk of the forest! Of course, there are also the have-nots, like Stumpy, Limpy, and Moldy. The tops of the tree line would never associate with the likes of them!
In the fall, they pass off their thinning leaves by dressing up a bit: “Look, yellow here! Orange there! Red, too!” Perhaps they can ignore the underlying warning signs (decreasing sunlight hours and declining temperatures) by drawing attention to their beauty and ability.
The show doesn’t last very long, though.
In the heart of winter, they have nothing to show the world at all. No one marvels at them anymore. A forceful humbling has descended on the woods, I think. After all, even my two-year-old knows that trees are green!! Something is not right here.
Of course, the winter doesn’t just cause the pretty leaves to fall; harmful bacteria life is removed as well. And the big trees are still big. They know they'll get through the winter; their time to glory will come again.
In the long run, the woods are better off thanks to winter, despite the season seemingly detracting from who they are and what they’re made to do.
Painfully relatable, isn’t it!? :D
Our lives do have need for a few winters. Truthfully, the season comes whether we invite it in or not. It’s a season where things just aren’t “right” - everything’s harder, lonelier, less fruitful, and you don’t even feel like yourself anymore.
When? How often? How long? There’s no predicting.
But if you ever find yourself in a winter, you don’t have to pretend it’s summer. (You won’t fool anybody, anyway ;) ). You can wish that you had your leaves back, but until then, continue quietly. There may not be anything pretty to see on the surface, but there’s life within preparing for what’s ahead.
And when seasons turn at spring’s breakthrough, remember winter. It’ll make the next one less jarring :)