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It’s after 10pm and we’re on the road to st. George. It’s silent in the car as our 3 sweet little ones are asleep in the backseat when just ahead of us in the carpool lane a truck begins to drift into the shoulder. Colby is thinking “oh they must be pulling over.” Realizing that might not be the case he makes some sort of noise that draws my attention just in time to look up and catch sight of them ram into the concrete barrier and ricochet off it it through the carpool lane and into the fast lane, barely dodging a collision with another car. Our breaths catch in our throat as we process the potentially fatal accident that was so narrowly avoided just ahead of us when the driver presumably fell asleep. The truck shakily regains control and I can only imagine the driver’s state of shock and disbelief. He or she turns on the hazards as they straddle the line between the fast and center lane of the freeway. We pass cautiously and notice that the airbags are deployed, making it impossible to see the driver or if there were any passengers. It feels like we’ve been holding our breaths for moments and we sigh a breath of relief to know that they, and we, and everyone around us is safe. Life is precious. Squeeze those you love.
It was one of those quiet moments I felt like I had to write down after. I haven’t thought about it that much since it happened just a few weeks ago, but as I continuously think about the things I’m striving for in my life I feel like I could caption my thoughts with the title “Be YOUR best YOU.”
We all have those sleepy moments in our lives when we’re drifting and not even aware that we are, and we all have scary blindspots in our vision that we’re seldom aware of, even when we’re not drifting and feel fully aware of everything around us, but occasionally we catch ourselves drifting dozily or those blind spots show up glaringly in our lives. Those moments can be traumatic but I believe those are some of the most important moments in our lives, for I believe it’s in those moments that we catch a glimpse of the person we truly are and who we can become and therin lies an opportunity; (And that is NOT in any way to put fault on the sleepy driver)If we learn to freeze and capture those moments, rather than be overwhelmed by them or block them out I believe they can be our greatest moments for growth. I feel like I’m rambling and not even certain that this is making sense. It is 2:30 in the morning…
Let me switch gears and see if I can make this come together. On our recent trip to the San Francisco Bay area we planned an outing to Henry Cowell State Park to see the redwood trees.
Originally our main reason for choosing that particular park was because it had a train that we thought our kids would like to ride, and it was conveniently located on the path to Santa Cruz.
When we got there on the 9th and last full day of our vacation in the area we were less inclined to pay the $29/person admission price to ride the train and decided to just stroll through the trees instead.
The kids loved the little visitors center and I would definitely recommend the self-guided brochure-tour. It became the highlight of the trip. If you haven’t seen the Redwoods I highly recommend it. They are truly magnificent and awe-inspiring. Here are just a few of the amazing things about them.
The pine cones of redwood trees are tiny. The seeds that they house are even tinier (think it takes about 125,000 seeds to equal 1lb) — underscoring the amazing magnitude of their height and potential.
Redwoods reach ever skyward to the light, climbing toward the sun, And eventually tower over all other living creatures.
The huge root systems of several trees, though shallow in the Earth, can extend over 100 feet from a tree, networking together, interlacing and weaving together like fingers locked together supporting each other.
Trees grow in families. Sometimes even growing in protective little family circles. “Parent trees” grow new young trees from them!
Redwoods capture more co2 emissions than any other tree.
A redwood’s bark can be 1 foot thick, and it contains tannin, which protects the tree from fire, insects, fungus and diseases. There is no known insect that can destroy a redwood tree. Fire is not a big threat because the trunk is thick, there’s lots of water inside the tree, and the bark doesn’t have flammable resin like a pine tree does.
I found myself more than a little emotional as I beheld the magnificence of these beautiful, amazing and gigantic trees. I felt certain God put them here as a symbol to us of the amazing potential and capacity we all have within us.
I believe as we reach ever skyward toward the light, interlace our roots with those around us, protect and shield our families and make loving sacrifices for their growth and well-being, we too will develop thick, resilient skin that will shield us from the unpredictable circumstances, threats and fire of the world — not that they won’t come and sometimes scar us — but that we’ll be stronger and recommitted in our efforts to reach skyward when they do.
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