Tiny yellow blossoms are popping out on the tree in the front, like mini propellers decorating the branches. Reddish pods holding life are scattered throughout every green limb, large and small; and the leaves are so full no sign of the trunk can be spied from outside. Another season, and it's preparing to grow and bloom fitting for the times. As we adjust to a new season, what we offer can take on fresh form and color. We posses a God given gift for every season of life.

What is coming alive in you in this season?

On the far end of the sky the faint clouds, barely perceptible, sit in alignment over the tops of the houses. A small black bird flies off in their direction, swaying and moving at a Sunday pace.  As if sitting on the sidelines, the pale white clouds seem spectators to the bright blue summer morning.  We, at times, live on the outskirts of life, sitting back watching, feeling less noticed or essential; yet we may be unknowingly providing a destination of rest for others.

What would it take to be more alive in an area of your life?  What unexpected benefits are coming from being on the sidelines?

A prominent and long jet tail streaks across the sky, cutting through the wispy clouds that surround it.  It's a determined pathway, uninfluenced as it stretches out of sight. Azure blue, popping through the thinning white that scantily clothes the sky, helps define the trail. After a pause, the streak has dispersed, blending in and now absorbed in to the sky scape. It reminds of how we can fly through life with such propulsion and determination, hoping to leave behind a legacy of importance; while legacy may be less meaningful as individual accomplishments than as essential brush strokes in a grander painting.  

What legacy would you like to leave? Are you living who you were made to be?

A bright, whole, green leaf is lying on the dark, newly paved blacktop; life still radiant in it against the hardened, lifeless ground. It draws attention to the entire area it sits on, adding a luster to the street that would otherwise go unnoticed. Its verdant color is still rich though disconnected from its source. It brings the scene alive.   It's doing what we might, if we take the life that's filled us, go out, and bring it to the lifeless. 

Where can you add life today? What is your source of Life?

Past the houses into the sun glazed sky to the east, there is a white haze that mutes any color. It's like the unknown, staring at us, without a hint of what's next. Looking away, the familiar lies all around. Trees, homes, lawns, sidewalks the same as every morning. Suddenly, the sun breaks past the corner of the house and the bright bulb overtakes the scene, casting eyes away from the haze to spotlight all before it. We can get lost and anxious in the coming unknown, but this reminds to turn away from distracting worry and see what is before us come to life.

What is getting missed as you worry or are preoccupied with the unknown future?

 The leafy limbs of the deciduous tree spread amply over the vehicle below, leaning so that they provide complete protection. On its other side, the tree is nearly bare, broken limbs crawling with green mold, with the inside of the truncated branches exposed. The once formidable plant seems fully committed to living out its purpose regardless of its condition or limitations. Its highest branch now a perch for the tiny bird on its way, the tree's brokenness has not in the least disqualified it from serving.

How can you live out your purpose, even with your present limitations?

Basking in the bright sunlight,  the leaves of the large tree appear to shimmer like gold coins, as the uninhibited sun lights up the treetops all across the street.  The remainder of each plant stands shaded, darker, hidden almost as the glory goes to that which is illuminated. In the distance, the peaks of the trees lit up like candles, fill the valley, while the trunks and stems, lie beneath, out of sight. It reminds how in life there is much we miss that remains in the shadows.  We see a bit, and yet there is so much more to explore, in others, in issues, and even within ourselves. 

What would you like to explore further today? What is shaded in your life that you would like to bring in to the light?

The cloud covered sky with subtle billows and strokes of gray has dimensions seen only by a longer gaze. Out across the horizon a ledge of clouds stands out as a border from one end of the scene to the next. A bird flies with furious speed, wings flapping double time away, into the distance toward the ledge. The speed defies purpose, and he races out of sight. We are like that a lot. Speeding through, seeming to be heading somewhere with racing speed, but not quite sure; and missing the subtleties that often bridge our lives together with meaning. A slower pace and longer gaze may just bring it all into focus.

What happens inside you when you take a deep breath and linger there? What might you see?

The attached roofs across the street appear like uneven steps, each with its own color, texture and size.  They lay in the awakening sunshine with their own features that set each apart.  One with lattice hanging down, another with two tone shingles, one black and simple, another with a small chimney sprouting from it. They have the appearance of individuality, yet all point upward and are connected as one. We too each have a unique impression to convey, yet it's in our connection to one another that this difference stands out. 

What is unique about you? Who do you need to connect with for this uniqueness to be magnified?

The bright red blooms poke their heads out from the shrub as a dog pops it's head out of the car window. Against the concrete background the flowers seem out of place, full of life, vibrant in color and very alert. The pavement below is hard and speckled, and colorless.  Even the shrub these wide open roses are sitting on contrasts with the tender petals, with its sharp thorns hidden behind firm auburn and green leaves. How does tenderness co exist in such a hardened world? Gentleness, tender beauty, kindness and enthusiasm seem out of place at times, against the calloused world. Yet, life itself resides within them.

What is the gentle side of you wanting to say to you today? What would you do differently if you didn't need to be so strong?