Trees...

A friend e-mailed me the following story...

I hired a plumber to help me restore an old farmhouse. After he had finished a rough first day (a flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric drill quit) his ancient 1 ton truck refused to start.

While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence.

On arriving at his home, he invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree touching the tips of the branches with both hands.

Afterward, he walked me to the car. As we passed the tree my curiosity got the better of me and I asked him about what I had seen him do earlier.

"Oh, that's my trouble tree," he replied. "I know I can't help having troubles on the job, but one things for sure, those troubles don't belong in the house with my wife and children...So I hang them up on the tree every night when I come home and ask God to take care of them. In the morning, I pick them up again."

"Funny thing is," he smiled, "when I come out to pick them up, there aren't nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before."

We all need a tree.