Do you know people who are always happy? People who seem to flow along unaffected by the trials that must surely be swirling around them? I think I know how they do it. Instead of going through the day counting all the bummers, they choose to see the blessings instead. Recently I had an experience that reminded me  its possible to be content even when your circumstances encourage otherwise.

Years ago, we planted a small copse of pine trees in the U-shaped center of our driveway. We nursed and mulched those baby trees as they grew up right alongside our daughters. Over the years they hosted birds’ nests, ant farms, totem pole faces, scavenger hunts, and came to be called the “tree garden.”

Bummer: I was shocked one morning this spring when I came out the front door to discover that a destructive night wind  felled one of the larger pines. The fragrant giant stretched across my driveway, well into the neighbor’s yard, while shards of the broken stump reached up like fingers from the mulch. The sight was heartbreaking.
Blessing: Despite the length and width of that huge tree, it didn’t hit my car or my house. It landed within a foot of my deck and inches from my car, safely between the two, and nowhere near the front porch of the neighbor’s house toward which it was pointed. Continue reading →