It’s;official.;The;weather;has;turned here;in;the;beautiful;Pacific;North- west.;This;weekend,;it’s;been;a;tor- rential;rain;storm;which,;believe;it
or;not,;is;considered;“severe”;even;for;my
neck;of;the;woods.
When;I;say;“woods,”;I’m;not;kidding.
I;live;in;the;farm;country;of;southwest
Washington state, surrounded by tall,
willowy;trees.;Some;are;deciduous,;and
some;are;evergreen.;I;don’t;have;a;favor-ite;one.;I;love;them;all.;In;the;summer,
they;fill;out;and;provide;shade.;In;the
winter,;the;evergreens;remind;me;that
there;is;still;life;under;the;ground.;They
stand;up;tall;in;the;wind;and;rain.;They
look;majestic;covered;in;snow.
Today as the storm came in, I de-cided;to;sit;for;a;while;(a;rare;thing;for
this;busy;mom;of;seven);and;watch.;The
rains came down, and the wind blew
hard;against;the;house.;Branches;began
to;fall;from;high;in;the;treetops.;Leaves
swirled;in;the;air.;Maple;seeds;“helicop-tered”;through;the;air,;to;the;delight;of
my;children.;It;seemed;almost;magical.
After;about;half;an;hour,;I;heard;the;first
crash.;We;ran;to;the;back;window;and;there
it;was—the;first;casualty of;the;storm.;A
huge;branch;from;a;tall;maple;tree;had;fall-en;under;the;pressure;of;the;wind;and;rain.
The;ground;had;been;saturated;from
days;of;torrential;rains,;and;the;root;sys-
tems;of;some;of;the;biggest;trees;were
beginning;to;be;exposed.;As;I;looked;up,
I;could;see;the;giant;trees;swaying;back
and;forth;in;the;wind,;moving;several
yards;with;each;sway;in;all;directions.
The;sky;was;getting;dark;as;the;sun;set,
and;the;clouds;billowed.;It;was;terrifying
and;thrilling;at;the;same;time.
Majestic;trees;swaying;back;and;forth
in;the;wind;and;the;rain;would;bend;just
long;enough;for;the;wind;to;stop;for;a
moment.;Even;though;branches;fell;off
these;mighty;trees,;the;trees;themselves
stood;firm.;They;would;bend,;but;they
did;not;break.;I;was;amazed;at;the;re-siliency;they;displayed.;Gust;after;gust,
they’d;bend,;almost;to;a;breaking;point,
and;then;slowly;move;back;to;center.
The
Busy;Mom
Heidi St. John
Bend;;Don’t;Break
On;the;days;when;the;rain;won’t;stop;falling,;I;cling;to;the;promises;of;the;Bible.
