This morning on our drive the nakedness of the trees caught my eye. I began to notice something that has now be uncovered from the shelter of their leaves. Something that isn’t usually exposed when the trees are wrapped in the protected cover with leaves, and the background of the vivid blue sky painted a beautiful picture of……………
Nests – be they bird or be they fierce hornets!
The remnants of a summer home, some are little, some are big but all are abandoned and vulnerable against the cold December winds and snow. Once again I am reminded how much goes on in our every day lives that we are so oblivious to.
Far and wide, there are limitless dramas, big and small in concert right before our eyes. Nests built, eggs laid, baby birds and bees learning to fly. And it is all kept secret from the outside world covered within its shelter of the foliage of the tree.
Like the tree we all walk around holding our stories …..Yes my little man has a story, sometimes he keeps it very private!
Our neighbors who we never see except as we pull from our driveways in the dim morning light.
The clerk at the grocery store checking our goodies and placing them in bags, of course she/he has a story we just don’t know what it is!
Our newspaper is delivered by a stranger in the early morning hours.
And you my dear readers – yes you all have your own story.
I too have a story.
On the outer surface we are covered with a protective shell just like the leaves of summer trees. We are just individuals, unique and trying to survive.
Inside there’s the nest – the layer that is the authentic us, shared with only a few and protected from nearly everyone.
People always ask that assortment of questions in an effort to view our nests:
“How are you today?” The answer – “I’m fine, how are you?”, unless of course you’re feeling particularly great on that day. My question is do we ever give the real answer?
When at a social gathering we are often asked: “What do you do?” “Where do you work?” …my answer I love my son from sun up to sun down, and work my heart out to be able to provide him with life’s necessities. I do laundry, I shop at the grocery story, I drive 35 miles to and from work Monday through Friday, I fix meals, I play with him, and I climb into bed exhausted at the end of each day – but with love in my heart knowing that I am loved in return for all I do.
Today I discovered that underneath all those layers of who I am, to discover the nest - the heart of life I need to get beyond the leaves, I must look closely in and there is something beautiful and wonderful to reveal to each of you. I am entrusted with knowledge to pass on to my son that the only things we will be able to take from this earth and the only things we will leave behind aren’t possessions at all.
It is love, memories, and relationships. So during this Christmas season I am challenging myself and those who know me best to look for the true nest in others.
I will be baking some goodies to take to our neighbors and my co-workers just because. 
On our blog we send you our Christmas blessings for an amazing 2014 to those of you near and far!
We will be exploring (NOTICING) those trees in our lives more closely and searching out their nests in 2014. I know there are treasures that can be revealed if we are brave enough to look closely.
