The Seasons of Life

A friend shared this "story" with me; she must be able to read minds or something, because it really struck a chord with me, especially tonight; after hearing some bad news about one of my longtime friends of 29 years...

I had never heard this story before and I have never looked at sickness, trials, tribulations and loss with such an open heart and mind. Thank you for sharing this Doddie...you continue to make a positive and lasting impression on my life.

And thank you RG for being such a bright and positive light and inspiration of positive thinking even when things seem dark. You are a true warrior and will make it through this an even stronger and more beautiful person. xo

The Four Seasons of a Tree

Why you should not judge a life by one difficult season.

There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn to not judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away. The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in summer, and the youngest son in the fall. When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen. The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted. The second son said no--it was covered with green buds and full of promise. The third son disagreed, he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen. The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfillment. The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they had each seen but one season in the tree's life. He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season, and that the essence of who they are--and the pleasure, joy,and love that come from that life--can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up. If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your spring,the beauty of your summer,fulfillment of your fall.

Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest.