Even in Winter
Winter is kind of the worst. Now don’t get me wrong, there are quite a few things I like about it:
I really enjoy the first snow, hot chocolate, sledding, building snowmen. Everything about celebrating the birth of Christ is my favorite.
But let's get real. Once Christmas is over, the cold just gets colder, loneliness starts to kick in, and everything seems pretty cold, dark, and depressing. So last week in prayer, I wrote this (I guess we’ll call it a) poem.
Winter
In winter, a tree is
sustained by its roots;
its leaves have died, its
colors faded.
Yet it has life.
It stands firm
knowing not when spring,
its time of beauty,
again shall come.
Yet it has life.
This life comes from the deep,
deep within the ground
where its roots have been planted.
The tree relies solely
on what lies there in
that deep ground to
sustain it.
Cold wind ferociously blows.
Ice and chill set in.
Yet it has life.
Winter is long.
It is persistent.
It seeks to dishearten.
It seeks to destroy.
Destroy memories
of warmth,
of light,
of beauty.
Yet still, it has life.
Though it might be dissuaded
from hoping,
the tree still stands.
It has life.
One day,
spring will come,
the sun will shine.
The tree shall find
nourishment in its
leaves.
Flower and fruit shall
again adorn its branches.
It will bear life.
But now is the winter.
Now is the trial.
Now it holds firmly to
the ground:
Which gives it life.
Winter may suck, but it calls us to reflect on where we draw life. Even in winter... especially in winter, we are called to sanctity. Whether that be the cold darkness we call the season of winter, or the winter of our own hearts. This poem is a bit exposing. It's a lot of my heart in metaphorical words, but the essence of it lies in the ground. I don't always reach deep within that ground to find life; and the absence of it is much colder and darker than the worst winters. God is the fertile ground in which we should sink our roots.
So, when winter takes all of our joys away, even when all we have left is our bare hearts (filled with scars and deformity); if we are firmly planted in He who is (Goodness and Mercy itself) we will stand, and we will have life.
"I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."
John 10:10
