GOD I LOVE THIS TREE

Once again I find myself sitting on the front porch just enjoying the beautiful afternoon. Since I have made myself a promise to get back to just "BEING" this seems to be one of my favorite spots. This past couple of years, especially the last three months or so, I have made a sincere attempt to further distancing myself from all the illusions of this 3D existence. I rarely turn on the news, I don't get overly excited at all the B/S going on all around me, and I don't get caught up in other people's drama. Today I'd like to share with you a story about the Bradford Pear trees that sit in my front yard. When this home was built in 2006 there were two of these trees which sat by side. They were very small saplings and were staked to a rod to help them to grow straight. I've always loved these trees. They come into bloom in the springtime and are filled with lots of beautiful white blooms. After the blooming period the leaves turn a beautiful dark green color. They stay green until the fall season then they turn brown and fall to the earth and once again begin the cycle of life. Now I must admit that there are times when I still tend to take for granted Mother Nature and all Her glory! But here lately I find myself more attuned to all the life around me. I have gone back to my "old self" and even started to once again talk to the plants, the trees, the hummingbirds, the squirrels, and all the other living things. Back now to this one tree in particular. Back in 2009 I think it was, we were hit by a really severe ice storm. Major damages all around. The weight of the ice on many trees became unbearable and the limbs snapped and fell to the ground. It was an eerie night as I lay in bed and heard the cracking and popping of tree limbs coming down throughout the neighborhood. The next morning I surveyed the damage and noted several trees in my back yard had fallen completely down. But as I looked at the front yard those two Bradford Pears were still standing. However the one on the left had about one third of its limbs caked with ice and it had snapped those limbs in half. It had also been bent to the left quite a bit and no longer stood straight up. The other tree looked to be untouched by the storm. After the storm finally cleared and it was time for the cleanup, I did notice that the one tree had lost its shape and I had to cut away the broken limbs and I tried to straighten it up best that I could. I got to admit it did look little weary and abused. Come spring while its yard mate looked so good blooming, this other one did bloom but still leaned to the left and looked traumatized on the one side. But it kept on growing and looking better and better each year. Today as I sat out here and talk with these two trees, I couldn't help but see that they look almost identical. Both are healthy looking and very full of dark green leaves. Other than the small lean to the left I'd say they look the same. But I think I feel a special connection to the one that is bent a little. Because like it my life too has been hit by several "storms" and I too have been knocked to the ground by a very heavy load on my "limbs". And I've been down and not looking so great for a while as i struggled to stand back up straight. I too have been traumatized a time or two. But I have managed to keep on growing.  I may still be "bent" a little bit but you know what? That's okay, it gives me character. But you know, none of this really matters. In this world of illusion I know I am the tree, I am the plant, I am the hummingbird, I am the squirrel. I AM THAT WHICH IS THE I AM. God, I just love this tree!