It is Monday and I hope your day is a wonderful one in many ways. For us it is about 6-10 degrees cooler that the past one. We have had some intense rains and humidity. The weather affects our allergies and attitudes.
Mother nature does her own thing in spite of how we feel. In this photo you can see a broken tree. It happened to fall in the backyard of a neighbor. Thank goodness it didn’t land on a house, car, or animal. Often this family has two dogs that roam in the yard; fortunately they were not there when it decided to tip. This is the 2nd time in recent weeks were someone I have known has had a tree come down. 
In the first incident a large tree did come down. It landed on top of a house and power lines. It put a hole in the roof of a friends house and into the ceiling of a bedroom. He has major damage and expenses that insurance is not covering. The removal of the tree has become his problem and financial responsibility. It is a large and heavy tree.
Again we must be thankful that no one was hurt. A group of people could have been sitting on the deck or in the yard. Unfortunately, it will take time, patience, and money to cure the problem.
It is still being sawed apart and dismantled. The roof needs to be totally rebuilt and the interior as well. Part of the tree is still standing and will require lots of work and money on the part of the owner, because insurance did not cover it. He is still cleaning up the mess and will be for several weeks.
In the case of these trees, they will be disposed of and chopped up for firewood and mulch. Brokenness however, comes in many forms. In the case of people, we are often left with broken hearts as a result of circumstances. We are depressed from broken relationships, because someone has died or moved away. We feel alone and our spirit for life is dampened.
FEELING BROKEN IS A FEELING THAT WE CAN CHANGE. Our attitude toward healing is powerful. Sometimes we have to slow down and write things down to help purge negative feelings. It also helps us formulate positive ideas to move forward. Look to others who are successful and happy. Talk to them. Go out of your way to make relationships succeed. It is easy to do nothing or to blame other people for the way we feel.
But what I want to discuss here is “HOPE” for the feeling of brokenness. Brokenness comes in many forms. Sometimes we say we are broken. Circumstances in our lives take on a series of unfortunate changes, but we come through. We are resilient people. All things are temporary. When we are broken making changes and choices to pull ourselves through difficult times helps immensely.
Psalm 34:18 tells us that “The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
Today, having learned from these other people who had tree issues, I talked with our tree specialists. Two lovely blue spruces that have given us privacy and shade need to come down in our yard. They are over 40 years old, and so it is like losing a couple of friends. Our dog has used it for shelter in the winter snowfalls, so I think it is going to be a loss for her too. It is a home for birds, so they will have to relocate.
We have decided it is better to take action before we have one of them come down on its own. Trees like so many things in life are placeholders and serve us well when they are healthy. Unfortunately the budget hadn’t planned for the removal of these, but so be it. Changes that we can control make our lives move smoothly and I don’t want other trees to be diseased in our yard, nor do I want them to come down on their own.
Let’s all stay healthy, work together, and Delight in Living.