Trees, Not Timelines

 
 

The hist’ry books are filled with lines
That mark the passing of the times.
They tell of battles lost and won,
Of circles traveled ‘round the sun,
Of men who lived in days of yore
Who left things different than before.
But lines can’t show us the extent
Of impact from each lone event.

We tend to see our lives the same–
A line drawn out below our name
Beginning at our year of birth
And stretching till we leave this earth.
And on this line we mark our years–
Some filled with joy, and some with tears.
These notches show the ups, the downs,
Give evidence of faith or doubt.

But when we see our lives this way,
Recording day by plodding day,
We’re missing out on any chance
To see the great significance
Of all the trials we endure
And how they help us to mature.
Instead, we ought to use a tree
To think through our chronology.

A tree is made of rings, you see,
That clearly show its history.
A black scar shows the tree survived
Through wildfires; then it thrived
As wider rings show years of rain.
The pockmarks show when insects came.
Each ring–though flawed–within the tree
Contributes to what it will be.

The same is true of me and you,
For everything that we go through
Is used by God to help us be
A taller, strong, fruit-bearing tree.
For every single day and year
Means more than it at first appears–
A ring of growth by God’s design,
Not just a notch upon a line.

Esther EngelsmaComment