Those who visit our home often comment on the beauty of the yard. But if our guests were to stand in our yard this time of year, they might offer sympathy for the apparent death of a pair of trees at the back of our property. They would look at two bald cypress trees, which present as evergreens, and see what appear to be dying limbs dropping rust-colored needles. They might grieve for the loss of something once strong and beautiful but now withering.
Those familiar with trees may know: although the bald cypress is in the conifer family - trees normally green and growing throughout the year - this variety of cypress is an anomaly. They shed their leaves in the fall just like the hardwood trees around them. These trees that look vibrant in the summer - and dead in the winter.
This pair of trees in our yard could be a cause for concern, even grief, at a time when many are feeling the same emotions for the health of our country. But maybe they offer
a hopeful reminder, that what appears lost might only be entering a fallow time of year. That in time, new growth will reemerge. Patience and perspective are what’s called for, not fear and regret.
In the wake of the recent election, I’ve been trying to keep the events and news of each day in perspective. It is not easy. I tell myself that half the country voted for the president-elect. Many of my neighbors celebrated the election results; they say changes are needed. After her defeat Kamala Harris spoke of our country as a family. She reminded us that as with any family, we can expect to have disagreements. But the proposed changes with the new administration feel like more than family disagreements. Each day I fear for the future of our country. It feels like something has been lost, something has died.
David Whyte is one of the writers I turn to when I need comfort and perspective. He writes in his book, Consolations:
“Solace is the art of asking the beautiful question of ourselves, of our world or of one another, in fiercely difficult and unbeautiful moments. Solace is what we must look for when the mind cannot bear the pain, the loss or the suffering that eventually touches every life and in every endeavor... Solace is the beautiful, imaginative home we make where disappointment can go to be rehabilitated. When life does not add up in any way, we must turn to the part of us that has never wanted a life of simple calculation.... Solace is not meant to be an answer, but an invitation through the door of pain and difficulty to the depth of suffering and simultaneous beauty in the world that the strategic mind by itself cannot grasp or make sense of…Standing in loss but not overwhelmed by it, we become useful and generous and compassionate and even amusing companions for others.”
I share these words and thoughts as much to comfort myself as anyone else. Like many of my friends, I am trying to understand what happened, and what needs to happen next. I am struggling to find my true north again. In the wake of an election that has challenged and changed what I believed just weeks ago, I fear for what may be permanently lost. As worrisome as the proposed changes are for some of us, I know they may be much harder for many who live here, and others who have come here.
Then, sitting on our back porch, I take a breath, and I see the morning sun lighting the tree line at the back of our yard. I don’t know where the effects of this election may leave us years from now. I tell myself it is foolish to anguish over events that have yet to play out. We planted a pair of trees four years ago at our new home, with no guarantees for their future. They have thrived where they were planted. This morning I’m confident they will weather the cold months ahead, time will pass, and they will emerge with new growth in the spring.
I would like to believe we may see the same resilience in the next chapter of this country. I will pray for this future.
Craig DeBussey is only sort of a new GPPC member these days. He serves with our Endowment Foundation and helps with a variety of events as part of the Fellowship Committee. A retired physical therapist, he stays busy in his wood shop and enjoys sharing his woodworking talents with the church.
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