Through Drought and Storm
It was in the home of the towering pine trees of east Texas that I stumbled upon one of life’s greatest lessons.
While taking a stroll on a cool cloudy day, I noticed a colossal oak with long drooping branches up in the distance. More wide than tall, this beautiful specimen appeared as if it was reaching out to grasp anything that drew near to it. It was without question, one of the most beautiful oaks I had ever seen. Dipping my head beneath the broad lower branches, I gazed above to view the remaining trunk. Scattered across the limbs of the tree were withered plants clinging tight to the bark of the ancient monument. The encrusted plants appeared as if they hadn’t taken a drink of water in days. While the rest of the tree was lush with the cross shaped foliage characteristic of all post oak trees, the groups of curled plants found on the bark appeared anything but luscious. Any passerby would assume these were just the remains of something once beautiful, but it’s beauty no longer remained. I thought no different. I had given up on them. It was later that I found out the name of these miraculous plants. Resurrection fern.
Resurrection fern is a mystical plant. Able to lose over 90% of its water content during droughts, the fern shrivels to a fraction of its size. It has the appearance of lifelessness. But don’t let its appearance fool you. There is still a future for this humble plant for it knows something other species forget, rain is coming. Hold on.
A few weeks had passed since I had visited my old giant friend, so I decided to pay the oak another visit. Having learned a little about the fern and knowing that rain had visited the day before, I expected to see a little more life amidst the branches. I was astonished at how much it had changed. The vibrant green color indicative of life was not only found on oak’s leaves, but all throughout the branches themselves. Life among life. The ferns had held on. They had persevered. They hadn’t given up on hope and their beauty had returned. Is this not also the lesson of the palm tree?
Nearly two hundred miles south of this outstretched oak tree, lies another “tree” on the coast of Texas. A fifty-foot palm sits among the sand near the shore. It stares at the crashing blue sea, knowing turbulent winds and roaring waves will try to strip it one day from its home among the coast. The palm has seen is fair share of poor weather before, and it will certainly see it again, but it is ready. Its malleable cells and flexible trunk allow the palm tree to bend beneath the weight of hurricane force winds and not break. The ‘rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds beat against” it, but still the palm tree stands.
The palm has the same confident expectation as the fern. It endures knowing a better day is coming. Sunshine is just around the corner, so it holds on. I wonder if we could all learn the lesson of the fern and the palm.
Trials will come, but though drought and storm be with us now, a better day is just ahead. Hold on to hope.
-The Hopeful Oak
“For I consider that the sufferings of the present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
*Featured Image: Live Oak with Resurrection Fern by James DeMers. (no changes made) https://pixabay.com/fr/photos/virginie-ch%C3%AAne-ch%C3%AAne-du-sud-ch%C3%AAne-440351/ Dried Resurrection Fern image from Wikimedia Commons, Creator: Unknown (no changes made) https://images.app.goo.gl/GdtbiNzex2afLzsz7
Green Resurrection Fern image from Wikimedia Commons, Creator unknown (no changes made) https://images.app.goo.gl/id8rHfqC6de4iSts7