One last thought about the remains of our cherry tree.
When the tree was felled, we decided to leave the main part of the trunk and some limbs as a place to secure bird feeders and on which to train something else. It took a few months to stop dithering between roses, honeysuckles and wisteria but the latter won the contest.
The vision is for a mass of blooms, in years to come, supported by the old trunk. A good use for something that had originally been a thing of beauty in and of itself.
I have always derived great pleasure from seeing other people’s lives blossom, whether in their careers or elsewhere. Like helping someone by simply holding open a door while they through it, giving a few words of helpful encouragement here and there is often rewarded many times over.
There are times when we need support and times when we can give support. Prayers spoken silently, words of encouragement offered, occasional thoughts shared might be more useful than was imagined in the first place.
Apart from the obvious challenge to support others wherever possible, we all need reminding that that God our Father is always there for us in our weaknesses and when we need helping up. His Spirit gives us guidance and work in our conscience and Jesus is there to talk to and to protect us from ourselves.
A Prayer
God whose strength is sufficient to bear the weight of our weakness, be there for us we pray when help, an encouragement or a warning are called for. Enable us in our turn to be there for other people or Jesus’s sake, Amen.