Dogwood Branches

Among the many trees on our property is an old, rather decrepit-looking dogwood. It has grown up in a grouping with some other plants and bushes, and due to the loss of several limbs, is quite lopsided. In fact, one limb is hanging down but got tangled up in lower branches before it completely broke off. Somehow the limb manages to have a couple of leaves on the side that is still connected to the tree. We've talked for a couple of years about removing the entire planting but it's been low on the priority list.
The remnants of Hurricane Ike came through Southern Illinois last weekend. Plenty of limbs were down throughout the yard, including one decent-sized limb off the old dogwood. What surprised me is that the limb on the ground wasn't the limb that had been hanging for so long. The limb that blew off in the wind had been higher up in the tree, leaning out on its own. I realized that while the partially-broken branch was not nearly as healthy as the other one, it was still connected to the tree because it was being held by lower branches.
When hurricanes come through my life, I pray that I remember these branches. If I'm trying to stick it out on my own, no matter how spiritually healthy I may be, I'm at great risk of being blown off the tree by the storm. On the other hand, while I may be a broken branch with few leaves to show, if I am held up by fellow branches, I will be much more likely to weather the storm and remain attached to the tree. Thank you, my darling friends and family, for being my branches.

And We're Off!

Hi Everyone!
You can thank Kay Hall for my being here. In early August I saw my darling friend at the annual ACMI retreat. We talked about what we were reading and writing and she piped up, "You know, you should blog." I must admit, my first thought was, "Yeah, right, whatever." And I blew it off. But alas, a small seed was planted, and despite my best efforts to smother it out of existence, it grew. Of course, I came up with many reasons why I couldn't, shouldn't and wouldn't blog. First of all, I'm a self-confessed techno-idiot. If it wasn't for my darling husband, Clinton, I wouldn't be able to forward email. I can barely turn the computer ON. I have a full schematic and 2 type-written pages on how to use our tv/stereo/satellite/dvd-vcr thing. Secondly, well, what IS a blog, anyway? Where do you buy them? Do they hurt when you try them on? Then I realized I was confusing them with clogs... But, I digress... Thirdly, what could I POSSIBLY have to SAY that anyone would find even remotely interesting? As some of you well know, I don't have a lot to say, but you have to listen a long time to find that out. (I didn't come up with that phrase, but it sure fits me.) And even more to the point, I don't have time to blog! But this little seed kept growing, and I realized that this was, in fact, a God thing. For a long time I've had all these little writing ideas but no place to put them. And without a place to put them, they go unwritten. And if they're not written, I forget about them. The worst part of that is that I lose the lesson. I love to learn and I love to share what I've learned. And, well, if you want to learn along with me, then join me here when you get a chance. And if you don't, that's fine, too. So here we go, on a little journey into my head (fairly empty) and my heart (fairly full). I hope it's not too scary! (For me, I mean, not for you. Although it could be scary for you. If it is I apologize...) But, I digress... I'll try to polish up the blog, add a picture or two (when Clinton has a chance to show me how to work the camera), and fill you in on what I am learning from what God is doing in my Everyday.