The Old Tree In The Middle Of The Dry Desert

There has been chatter in our house lately about having to move. With the job that my husband has, one of the downsides is that we have to move often, and always moving to a place that is strange and foreign to us. But this move I am really looking forward to because it is very close to my family. In the 15 years that we have been married, we have never been able to settle into an area close to family, and now our time has come. We are finally going to settle down and buy a house to call our very own--I'm so excited.

As I sit here in this house and wonder what I will miss, not many things come to mind. When you move into a house knowing that it is not your own and that soon you will be leaving the same way you came, you don't establish firm roots or put much effort into thinking about anything permanent, or get to know the people around you very well. I know that seems like flawed thinking, but when you move around a lot, it becomes a defensive mechanism so moving on and moving forward is not so painful.

But there is one thing that I think I will miss--there is a tree directly outside of our back window. This is an old tall tree that has established firm roots deep into the ground. Although I am not sure what kind it is, I appreciate it's true beauty. I wonder how many people stared out at the window, paused for a moment in time, and got lost in thought like I have. I wonder if anyone else truly appreciated it's beauty by cutting, watering, and pruning it's branches?

It is growing in an odd place in the backyard so I wonder sometimes whether it was intentionally planted there or if a stray seed took root and it was simply a force of nature? I can really learn a lot from this tree, this old and thriving tree in the middle of the desert. I can learn from this tree that no matter where my husband's job or life takes us, we can also thrive and be healthy and add some joy in our lives if we just put a little effort into it.

I love that old tree and I'm going to miss it. We are going to move away from here. Move and buy ourselves a house that we can call our own and plant our own tree so it can grow to be big and strong so that my children can stare out at the window, pause for a moment in time, and got lost in thought. And that old tree outside this window that I staring at will still be standing.

--tegdirb92