From The Storyteller
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Hello All: This story is one that might apply to most of us. Enjoy. Doug
Cherry “A mature, tart cherry tree produces about 88 pounds of cherries each year”, Elaine to me after a Google search in response to my wondering about the magic of trees producing fruit. Standing in front of a local, fully loaded tree I’m marveling at how trees start with buds and end up loaded with fruit. And this, of course, causes me to think about bronze baby shoes. I grew up in a community (70+ years ago) where some would actually bronze a child’s worn-out, first pair of baby shoes. I remember puzzling over how the big people I knew had fit into those shoes. At the time, growing up for me only meant a new mark on the closet door and being the only boy meant no hand-me-downs to grow into. Size in grade school only mattered in the annual class pictures, and then high school happened, and size suddenly became a reality. There were big guys (and girls), and I was not one of them. When I asked my folks about my lack of size the answer was, “You don’t get Airedales out of Poodles.” A great answer for a teenager, but a little short on detail. Which brings me to consider whether the answers I give, to questions others ask me, are any good - a good answer being one that satisfies the person asking the question. This of course requires a basic understanding of what the person asking the question wants to know. Example: At home my parents’ response worked, on a high school biology test it wouldn’t. Which causes me to smile as I think about my 26 years lawyering and 16 years as a Methodist preacher. All those years trying to explain the law and theology to folks - God, please forgive me for all the confusion I’ve caused. Moral: Confusion happens. |