The Main Street behind our property is partially lined with the most spectacular blooming Trees and each Spring I can't wait to see the profusion of huge Blossoms! They look like enormous Orchids to me and though I don't know what kind of Tree this is, I LOVE it! It is dazzling and each Tree seems to produce a different hue of similar Flowers ranging from the palest Violet to an almost Florescent Pink! Some Trees even seem to have a mixture of colors of their Flowers on their branches. And each Tree is thick with these magnificent Blooms... which are bigger than my hand in size! However, the Trees are very slow growing and so the City cut most of them down in recent years and planted faster growing varieties of Trees to produce more shade. *sob* I was deeply grieved, but thankfully a few of the larger, more mature Trees were left alone and still survive on a portion of the Street closest to our Home and I Hope they will not be cut down and replaced, it would grieve me greatly if they were. You see, some things are worth waiting for... the end result is well worth having more patience, Grace and endurance extended. I felt this way about these magnificent slow growing Trees, yes, it took many years before they grew to any significant size... but the Blossoms they put forth more than make up for the lack of speed in their maturity and growth to produce desired shade, which may have been the original purpose expected by those who planted and tended to them over the years. Though in a very Hot Desert environment shade is a premium and having a shade lined Main Street is a luxury to be enjoyed and treasured... seeing the Beauty put forth by these Trees and waiting a long time for them to get big enough to produce adequate shade is not to be discounted or cause them to be diminished in value compared to another type of Tree... one that perhaps matures fast but doesn't have the attribute of the magnificence of Bloom. Though I found these Trees to be absolutely magnificent and a real Treasure, obviously not everyone had that same opinion and thus many were sacrificed and cut down... replaced, just because they didn't meet the standards expected of them by some. These Trees are not unlike People... they remind me that we all grow and mature differently, we each have our merits and our downfalls... we all offer different and diverse things to our World... we have differences in aesthetics and appearance... but though our attributes are different, it makes us no less valuable and important in our own special way. Let us try to remember not to cut down those that aren't as we may want them or expect them to be... because what a loss it would be to the World as a whole if there were not this great diversity of all things... all were created and designed perfectly for a unique Purpose by the Creator... let us value each and every one and celebrate the differences... Dawn... The Bohemian
I'll be linking up with Mary at LITTLE RED HOUSE for Mosaic Monday... come take a peek at everyone's beautiful Mosaic Photos!