Life and Death

I went walking in the yard recently with Sandy. I was hoping to see some signs of life, a whisper of spring. Here are the stone steps that go down near the stone wall that Philip built. See the pavers at the bottom? My children's hand prints are in them. We have put so much of ourselves into this little piece of earth.

Finally, I found a little blossom of forsythia, one of the earliest bloomers. This morning, Adam found a camellia, but they are winter bloomers anyway; the forsythia is the hot yellow of warm days to come.

My Lady Banks rose bush is showing a little resurrection too, a few leaves here and there. When it's covered in green, the cardinals will build nests in it and hide their babies there -- more life.

Daffodil bulbs are popping up all over the yard. Now, we look eagerly for each one. Soon, we'll take all the green, yellow, red, pink and blue for granted.

And what of the dead? Some things are long past any resurrection. This was once a noble tree, stretching for sky and leafing for sunshine. Now, barely a stump. Only in its decay is it of value to new life. Man's life is fleeting as a shadow.