Thinking Out Loud Again Chronicles

Strength When We Least Expect It

October 30, 2011
By: Diane Szczepanski

"The little reed, bending to the force of the wind, soon stood upright again when the storm had passed over". ~ Aesop

The recent windstorm that passed thru mid-Michigan toppled hundred year old, solid-looking maple trees. It brought down large size limbs as if matchsticks, tossed patio furniture and generally wreaked havoc on anything not nailed down.

Yet, these seemingly fragile looking sunflowers in an open, unprotected area of a farmers field, made it thru relatively unscathed.

Their charming heads bowed against the harsh elements and backs bent in a hunkered down state, but still standing nonetheless.

The contradiction so blatantly evident in the forces that could bring down stately, massive trees, yet leave delicate appearing flowers unharmed, were baffling.

However, as with many things in life, sometimes the most puzzling of situations are also where we find our clearest and simplest answers.

Have we all not weathered a sudden squall at one point in our lives and found ourselves surprised at our own plucky back-bone, that we not only survived, but found strengths we weren't even aware we had?

We seemingly fragile human beings often find more tenacity within us than we thought capable when faced with adversity and we may have more in common with the sunflowers than we realize.

We endure tempests in life when our only choice has also been to bow OUR head and bravely stand against what's being blown at us.

Hardships which test our physical, mental and emotional strengths to their absolute limit. Our backs bent, sometimes to near breaking point, as we pray for the staying power not to be toppled.

We too, just like the sunflower, ride out storms we have no control over, as we optimistically scan the horizon for a peek of blue sky.

We hang on and carry forth, while we bide our time in anticipation at the return of the sun's cheer and it's promise to warm us.

Strength...

Perhaps the better meaning of the word strength isn't, "the quality or state of being strong; physical or muscular power".

For all practical purposes, it's really more meaningful than that.

As the case may often be, strength, at least personal strength, might very well be defined as the, "power of one's character and the quality of having HOPE"...

Just as in nature, storms are guaranteed to come into our lives.

The delicate looking little reed serves to remind us that the things we weather in life, shall eventually pass over, and we too, WILL stand upright again.