The
Family Tree
“Some
family trees have beautiful leaves, and some have just a bunch of
nuts. Remember it is the nuts that make the tree worth shaking.”
Author
Unknown
I
had a dream last week which showed my parents as they may have been
before life grabbed hold and shook them like rag dolls. My mother,
walking down a street in a dress and heels and a red jacket, her
shoulder length black hair swishing behind. My dad opening the door
to a large, comfortable house and graciously welcoming all comers.
The dream images have stayed with me, and reappear with regularity as
I go about my day. It's as if they want me to appreciate them as they
were before I knew them, as individuals who had plans, who had hopes,
and wide personalities. The dream was sweet, indeed.
Families
are like the ingredients in a good soup. Some meat, some broth, lots
of colorful vegetables and spices, some savory, some hot, some sweet.
There are those who provide substance; who are engines that move the
entire train forward. There are those who push from behind, and of
course, some who just ride for free. There are bandits and
interlopers and hobos. All family trees have a goodly allotment of
shiny leaves and knobby nuts. Would we have it any other way?
And
drama—oh my lord—so much drama! Any one who grows up in a family
becomes like a grain of sand inside an ugly oyster. Rolled and
tossed, hammered by the tides, and layer by layer, molded and melded
into a pearl of great worth. It is that family—that crazy,
beautiful, nut-infested family—that makes us who we are. Let us
thank God for each and every one.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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