Hmmm, are there one hundred rings inside that weathered trunk?
I was on a nature hike yesterday when this massive tree caught my eye. My fertile mind immediately named in the Gnarly Tree. I am not an arborist so I cannot speculate what those tuberous growths are or whether they are harmful to the tree. I can attest that it gives the tree a lot of character.
Clearly, it is a very old tree that has occupied its spot for many decades or perhaps even a hundred years. It must have weathered countless storms – adding ring after ring to its trunk to fortify itself. Indomitable comes to mind.
We can find inspiration from the Gnarly Tree for the troubling times in which we are living. Every trial overcome is another ring added. Every drought outlasted drives the roots deeper. Every illness survived leaves a new gnarly growth as a tangible sign of victory.
The Gnarly Tree is a random act of metaphor to declare that hardship toughens our core, that no one makes it through life without acquiring war wounds and that the determined survive to fight another day.
Wear your wounds proudly as badge of honour. Celebrate that you have survived the test of time. And above all, do not be afraid to be gnarly.
~ Now Available Online from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet
~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .
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Tags: gnarly tree · metaphor · Michael Robert Dyet · tree rings · war woundsNo Comments