IT’S FALL AGAIN! And that means pumpkin pie, apple cider and donuts, a trip to the local orchard, a scenic drive to view the colors, hayrides, and whatever else takes place during this season of transition.
One of the many tasks that falls (no pun intended) to homeowners this time of year has both a pleasant, and yet, frustrating element to it, namely, LEAF RAKING! For example, I was out raking the other day, enjoying the cool morning and the colorful leaves. I had raked up a nice pile and was reaching for a bag to place them in, when a brief gust of wind (lasted maybe one second) blew my whole pile away and brought down a gazillion other leaves that were scattered all over my nice clean lawn! One half hour of back-breaking effort, swept away faster than it takes to blink! Has it ever happened to you? Sure it has.
I stood there, staring at the scene for a moment, wondering what lesson I could learn from it all. Here’s what I deduced:
1. Don’t rake leaves unless it is perfectly still.
2. Don’t rake leaves at all. Hire it done by some kid in the neighborhood that will do it for practically nothing!
3. Let the leaves lie there till the Spring---they make good fertilizer.
4. Let the wind blow them into your neighbor’s yard and he can pick them up! Of course, the neighbor to the West may be thinking the same thing, which means you just can’t win.
5. Start a mulching pile. At least then you don’t have to pick them up. Don’t do this is the front yard.
6. Do not rake leaves too soon. Time and again, the first lawn to be swept of leaves has been shown to function as a kind of leaf magnet, attracting leaves from surrounding yards, and necessitating second or even third rakings.
7. Make sure the leaves are all down before you begin raking. I'm sure there are at least four billion on my large maple tree in the backyard. Be patient. The wind and rain will bring them down.
8. Pray that the first major snow storm doesn't arrive before you begin raking.
I saw a neighbor the other day blowing his leaves into the street and I thought he was crazy. Why not let the Lord do the blowing? He’s a natural!
Someone said, “Autumn leaves are a lot like raising kids. First they turn on you and then they fly away. The next thing you know, you look out the window and they’re back!”
On the more serious side, nature has a way of presenting many principles for living. I’ve been teaching a course called, “Surviving the Storms in Your Life.” It’s all about dealing with adversity. I thought about the leaves and it came to mind that in a similar manner we often clean up our lives and every thing is neat and in place, and we’re feeling good about life and then, just like a gust of wind, a crisis of some sort comes blowing into our space and everything is messed up again—or at least it seems that way. That’s when we need to call upon the One who has supreme power over nature itself. The same One who hushed the wind-driven waves can calm our soul. Frustration can turn to quiet trust and eventual peace. Biblical peace is not the absence of trouble, but the firm conviction that it has arrived for a purpose. It’s a test of our faith to see if we will fall apart at the seams or keep raking until the job is done.
One of the many tasks that falls (no pun intended) to homeowners this time of year has both a pleasant, and yet, frustrating element to it, namely, LEAF RAKING! For example, I was out raking the other day, enjoying the cool morning and the colorful leaves. I had raked up a nice pile and was reaching for a bag to place them in, when a brief gust of wind (lasted maybe one second) blew my whole pile away and brought down a gazillion other leaves that were scattered all over my nice clean lawn! One half hour of back-breaking effort, swept away faster than it takes to blink! Has it ever happened to you? Sure it has.
I stood there, staring at the scene for a moment, wondering what lesson I could learn from it all. Here’s what I deduced:
1. Don’t rake leaves unless it is perfectly still.
2. Don’t rake leaves at all. Hire it done by some kid in the neighborhood that will do it for practically nothing!
3. Let the leaves lie there till the Spring---they make good fertilizer.
4. Let the wind blow them into your neighbor’s yard and he can pick them up! Of course, the neighbor to the West may be thinking the same thing, which means you just can’t win.
5. Start a mulching pile. At least then you don’t have to pick them up. Don’t do this is the front yard.
6. Do not rake leaves too soon. Time and again, the first lawn to be swept of leaves has been shown to function as a kind of leaf magnet, attracting leaves from surrounding yards, and necessitating second or even third rakings.
7. Make sure the leaves are all down before you begin raking. I'm sure there are at least four billion on my large maple tree in the backyard. Be patient. The wind and rain will bring them down.
8. Pray that the first major snow storm doesn't arrive before you begin raking.
I saw a neighbor the other day blowing his leaves into the street and I thought he was crazy. Why not let the Lord do the blowing? He’s a natural!
Someone said, “Autumn leaves are a lot like raising kids. First they turn on you and then they fly away. The next thing you know, you look out the window and they’re back!”
On the more serious side, nature has a way of presenting many principles for living. I’ve been teaching a course called, “Surviving the Storms in Your Life.” It’s all about dealing with adversity. I thought about the leaves and it came to mind that in a similar manner we often clean up our lives and every thing is neat and in place, and we’re feeling good about life and then, just like a gust of wind, a crisis of some sort comes blowing into our space and everything is messed up again—or at least it seems that way. That’s when we need to call upon the One who has supreme power over nature itself. The same One who hushed the wind-driven waves can calm our soul. Frustration can turn to quiet trust and eventual peace. Biblical peace is not the absence of trouble, but the firm conviction that it has arrived for a purpose. It’s a test of our faith to see if we will fall apart at the seams or keep raking until the job is done.
posted by kazookid | 9:11 AM
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