Under Grumpa's Hat

This is a story that my own father once told me, as I was going through a rough stretch in my life, prior to moving to British Columbia. That story stuck with me my entire life, and I’ve told it to a few people who needed to hear it, including my own two children.

There was this maple tree, standing tall and strong. The tree was enjoying the sunlight of the summer months, and was generating oxygen for us all to breath.

Then, Fall season came and its leaves were changing colours. The nights were getting colder and soon, the leaves started falling one by one. In late Fall, the tree was bare, but still standing strong.

As the first snow fell, the Winter season arrived. For a few difficult months, the old maple tree went through freezing temperatures. It was covered in snow and ice. It stood in snow storms, frigid winds, and it even went through the odd ice storm. The tree, which looked so strong just a few months ago, looked dead.

Then came Spring time. The sun helped melt the snow and soon enough, the maple tree started getting some buds. As the season progressed, the buds turned into leaves and soon enough, the old maple tree that looked dead a few weeks earlier, looked alive again.

As summer came around, not only was the old tree still alive, but it had grown another foot, and was stronger, bigger and more majestic than ever.

You see, your life is like this maple tree. At times, we go through some very difficult times and we wonder how, sometimes even if, we’ll be getting through it all. We have lost our leaves and are surviving, or so it seems. But Spring always comes back and with it, so do our buds. We learn from those experiences and grow through them, coming out stronger.

God has created Mother Nature, as he has created us. We all go through our own challenges but if we persevere though them, we continue our growth. It’s just a matter of understanding, remembering and trusting that time will do its thing, and to know that better times are ahead.