Hammocking

I spent a few hours hammocking today—wind blowing through the trees—sun shining gently on my face.

I couldn’t help but notice just how far the trees bent back and forth—or wonder how much more so they swayed in last night’s storms—or marvel at how tall and strong they stood.

Alive and healthy, trees are resilient. They regularly withstand high winds and rain. They bend and sometimes branches break, but mostly, they stand tall in the face of storms.

It struck me as I lay in my hammock today that first responders, teachers, preachers, doctors, nurses, and other heroes of this pandemic are like that, too. Resilient. Strong. Withstanding huge amounts of stress. Bending, breaking a little, but mostly standing tall in the face of this storm.

I am grateful.

For the resiliency of the human spirit and for the courage that you give us to stand tall, oh God, we give thanks. Amen.