God Lays the Tree Down...by Beverley Leisy Hartman
I had been worrying about this very tall Eucalyptus tree in our backyard. It was such a small tree when we planted it many years ago. Now it looks rather ominous -- too close to our bedroom window...what if it fell on the house!?
When I shared this concern with Gary - he, with wrinkled brow, lamented, "Maybe I should top the tree to make sure it won't hit the house... yikes! What about holding a chain saw while I am up there on an extension ladder? This is not good. I wonder how much it would cost to have it taken down?? Too much I'm sure. Meanwhile a storm is coming, I'll just make sure that things are stable so the wind doesn't do too much damage." With that, he lashed the "too tall tree" to another nearby tree to stabilize it.
My mind eased with those precautions, I turned my attention to the fact that our granddaughters, Grace age 7 and Aislynne age 4, will be spending an overnight with us tonight. I'm looking forward to that! It is always such fun to watch their excitement as they play with our puppy, Bella... go looking for flowers in Grammy's flower garden...saying prayers aloud as we all crawl into bed. Oh, how we love our time with them.
Keep us safe tonight Lord.
The wind blew furiously and the rain pelted the windows all night long. Then, at the dawn's early light, Grace and I heard undefined sounds...first, a loud SWWooOSH! as the tree limbs and foliage scraped by the window panes. That was followed immediately by a ground shaking THUD! - as the tree slammed into the ground
What was that!? Instantly awake, we jumped out of bed, quickly opened the window blinds and peered outside. "Look! The big Eucalyptus tree is laying on the ground!" I exclaimed.
Grace ran to the next bedroom to awaken Gary. He slept through it all...but her excited voice brought him to his feet... "Bop! Bop! Get up - the big tree fell in the backyard!" (Gary was named 'Bop' by Grace when she was 3 years old and it "stuck.")
Gary came running down the hall and we all looked outside and then ran downstairs to the backyard to have a closer look.
There that big tree lay - broken off at the base, laying between other trees with the tip gently touching the fence. Not one bush was smashed or one panel of the fence broken. God just layed that tree down.
No damage done...God had answered our prayers...Thank you God for laying the tree down and keeping our family safe.
When I shared this concern with Gary - he, with wrinkled brow, lamented, "Maybe I should top the tree to make sure it won't hit the house... yikes! What about holding a chain saw while I am up there on an extension ladder? This is not good. I wonder how much it would cost to have it taken down?? Too much I'm sure. Meanwhile a storm is coming, I'll just make sure that things are stable so the wind doesn't do too much damage." With that, he lashed the "too tall tree" to another nearby tree to stabilize it.
My mind eased with those precautions, I turned my attention to the fact that our granddaughters, Grace age 7 and Aislynne age 4, will be spending an overnight with us tonight. I'm looking forward to that! It is always such fun to watch their excitement as they play with our puppy, Bella... go looking for flowers in Grammy's flower garden...saying prayers aloud as we all crawl into bed. Oh, how we love our time with them.
Keep us safe tonight Lord.
The wind blew furiously and the rain pelted the windows all night long. Then, at the dawn's early light, Grace and I heard undefined sounds...first, a loud SWWooOSH! as the tree limbs and foliage scraped by the window panes. That was followed immediately by a ground shaking THUD! - as the tree slammed into the ground
What was that!? Instantly awake, we jumped out of bed, quickly opened the window blinds and peered outside. "Look! The big Eucalyptus tree is laying on the ground!" I exclaimed.
Grace ran to the next bedroom to awaken Gary. He slept through it all...but her excited voice brought him to his feet... "Bop! Bop! Get up - the big tree fell in the backyard!" (Gary was named 'Bop' by Grace when she was 3 years old and it "stuck.")
Gary came running down the hall and we all looked outside and then ran downstairs to the backyard to have a closer look.
There that big tree lay - broken off at the base, laying between other trees with the tip gently touching the fence. Not one bush was smashed or one panel of the fence broken. God just layed that tree down.
No damage done...God had answered our prayers...Thank you God for laying the tree down and keeping our family safe.
