Gifford Volunteer Chaplain Kathy Rohloff shares her personal reflections in this blog post. Kathy and all of our volunteer chaplains offer a nonsectarian presence. If you need someone to listen, and hear you with compassion, you can reach them by calling the Rev. Tim Eberhardt at 802-728-2107.
By Kathy Rohloff
Autumn brings views that are able to be seen simply because the leaves are letting go, the seasons are changing, and things are becoming pared down.
When the extra is removed, what remains is simpler but still beautiful. It is a new time. As Noah Kahah sings, “And I love Vermont, but it’s the season of the sticks.”
There was a particular tree that I have passed countless times over the years, and just this year, I noticed its irregular trunk. The trunk actually bends and veers to the right before it straightens again.
What happened as a sapling to cause this? Was damage incurred or just a brutal winter experienced?
Today, though, the twisted trunk is a thing of beauty, and it sets the tree apart and makes it memorable.
Our individual lives undergo adjustments that may be due to new jobs, the loss of loved ones, health issues, or the everyday minutiae of life.
All of us have lived through events or circumstances that have shaped who we are today. Some have been painful, others almost broke us.
This is not the time to falter and stall; this, too, is temporary.
We must determine to keep on moving forward. As the saying goes, “The trees are about to show us how beautiful it is to let go.”
We will become compassionate and kind. We will know how to bend and how to carry on. The years go by quickly, some days are extremely long. Hold on. There will be new purpose and direction.
We are here to live the life that we have been given. Learn the lessons available. This is a gift too precious to waste.
