An Ode to Teachability

I walked down the road, mind distracted.

And then I looked up….

And I couldn’t help but pull on the dog’s leash to get him to heel.

I had to stop.

There…. the most stunning tree. Naked, it’s scaffolding exposed.

I’ve walked by this same tree, millions of times before.

But covered with its leaves, all I had done was nod to its fruit,

its ability to bear beauty and reach to the skies.

But, there, on this day… Its scaffolding exposed.

So stunning, I was compelled to stop.

Look at how she segments,

growing in new places, reaching in new directions.

The original branches remain, but she keeps on growing new offshoots.

Look at how,

In decades of growth, she keeps spinning new.

The conditions of the soil and the elements,

she bends to their directions.

And off she shoots new branches,

ready to bear more fruit.

Stunning, indeed.

And instantly I’m stained with tears.

Oh, may our scaffolding be so too.

May we bend to the elements, bend to the Soil,

offshooting new growth.

The old that was part of us, not falling away,

But making room for new growth, more fruit, a farther reach.

This is teachability,

and she is who we need

in a season where the elements are changing indeed.

Teachability, beautiful tree,

thank you for teaching me.

When people look under the hood of my fruit,

May they, too, find scaffolding as rich, as diverse, and as adaptable as you.