Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Have You Ever Noticed Nature's Lessons?

In the waning days of January northern Arkansas was devastated by a 100-year ice storm.

All exposed surfaces, whether structure, service line or tree were covered with one inch of ice. Most utility services were severed.

We spent 9-10 days without these services. We coped and found, even in our 70s, we could adapt to the conditions in which we find ourselves, including living in one room, cooking on a camp stove, heating with a butane bottle, without TV, computers, radios, etc. We did have a somewhat compromised cell service. Luckie, of course, thought it fun to capture our full attention, even if it didn't last.

I timidly stepped out my front door to make pictures of the winter wonderland. Trees were snapping and popping
under the weight of ice. The noise sounded like snipers on a battlefield. (see photo at upper left and right).

We lost and paid for removal of seven beautiful trees and severely topped or pruned seven others. We hired a tree service as some red oaks were more than 75' tall.

Our communities are slowly recovering. So it is with Nature, particularly the trees. Spring has arrived. The ugliness of bare, tall, naked, standing tree trunks, looking like severely elongated fence posts, is slowly changing with sprouting new growth. The severe ice damage will be well hidden on some trees; others will be moderately recovering. Some may never recover.

What amazes me is how the Great Creater and Designer of the Universe built in this capacity of recovery into all nature and ourselves.

No matter how damaged our Spirit, often due to our own destructive shortcom
ings, the Grace of the Great Creater and Designer of the Universe covers us and lifts us up beautifully refreshed and redressed!

The tree photos in this blog were all pruned or topped at the wrong time, so recovery will be more difficult.

There is an area of hills not far from us, where, reportably, Agent Orange, a defoliating and dangerous chemical was applied. Thirty years ago it was barren. It has recovered and today is covered with new vegetative growth and young trees. I have drawn many metaphors from watching this happen.

The Great Creator and Designer's plan has taken longer to recover from human destructive acts, but it has.


So it is with us. Sometimes it takes longer for the Great Creator and Designer to fix us, but everything is possible in its own time, if our time does not run out......


Let all the earth fear the LORD; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. Psalm 33.8

3 comments:

chaplain Grace Michelle said...

I have come to the conclusions that in destruction is rebirth and new life that springs forth very quickly. That is why I think God made us able to see the beauty in the act of the destruction itself.
Your photos and words to describe are wonderful. Thank you for sharing.
Grace

Pat - Arkansas said...

This is a lovely post, NitWit. Thanks for the reminder that our Creator does work to restore what has been created, including us, if, as you said, we have enough time for the restoration to take place.

We don't often have major ice storms here in central Arkansas, but there have been a few where the damage was horrendous. I can empathize with your loss of power plight; I about "froze out" one time when ice-covered falling limbs pulled the electric box off my house. Strange how even gas-fueled heating doesn't work without electricity. :)

Dot Moss said...

You have posted beautiful words to describe God's beauty and grace even in destruction and rebirth.
Thanks,
Dot

April 27, 2009 9:47 pm