Knots

One day my father walked with me into the woods to show me a special tree. At first it appeared hardly different than its neighbors but then I noticed that its trunk had been twisted into a giant knot. I wondered, how anyone could tie a knot into a tree trunk. Puzzled, I asked my father.

"Like this," he said, stooping to tie a simple knot in a tiny sapling.

I carry knots of my own; some physical, some emotional. But none as big as that knot tied in the trunk of a tree. My biggest knots are no larger than a limp to remind me of past surgeries or a persistent fear that still affects the choices I make.

If I carried a REALLY big knot I would find comfort in the memory of that special tree my father showed me. Although profoundly and forever altered by events in its past, it still managed to do the things God created trees to do.

I wish I could remember where to find that tree today. I would take my grandson for a walk in the woods.