Wisdom From A Tree.

Wisdom From A Tree.. For My Friend, Joy on her 93rd Birthday..

Like a seed meeting soil ,
so our lives were conceived .
Just as the new shoot emerged from the earth,
so we were born into the world.
The young sapling braved many a harsh storm
and basked in many a sunny day,
gradually learning to live in harmony - with the
changing seasons.

Our exciting and adventurous childhoods taught us
many of the essential lessons of life.
Now the young sapling is a tree,
now we are young men and women.
The tree , as it grows, will branch
profusely in all directions,
so we should we branch out with many
limbs of knowledge and experience.
the tree, will bend with the wind, but
if a branch should break- the tree is still a tree.
So should we remember to regard each of our branches
with equal importance- so we remain stable through
life's heaviest storms.

A bird may make it's home in the branches of the tree,
and the tree will be happy to share company with the bird.
Such are the joys of young love.
As the seasons change, the bird will leave, but the tree,
remains a tree.
So should we strive to enjoy love when it comes
our way and allow it to go when the time comes.

The tree never laments over leaves lost, nor does it eagerly await the
coming of spring: the tree just lives.
So should we remember that we have only the eternal present moment
in which to live.

The tree is young and has many fulfilling years ahead of it,
so should we make the best of our youth.
But who is to say when the tree is complete??
Each year it grows more majestic.
We will never be perfect men and women, but
we can strive to become more whole each and every day.

One day the tree will peacefully and willingly die,
returning to the earth from whence it came.
So too we will return to whence we came, happy to have lived our lives....