The Oak Tree

A mighty wind blew night and day.
It stole the Oak Tree’s leaves away.
Then snapped its boughs
and pulled its bark
until the Oak was tired and stark.

But still the Oak Tree held its ground
while other trees fell all around.
The weary wind gave up and spoke,
“How can you still be standing Oak?”

The Oak Tree said, I know that you
can break each branch of mine in two,
carry every leaf away,
shake my limbs and make me sway.

But I have roots stretched in the earth,
growing stronger since my birth.
You’ll never touch them, for you see
they are the deepest part of me.

Until today, I wasn’t sure
of just how much I could endure.
But now I’ve found with thanks to you,
I’m stronger than I ever knew.

.- by Johnny Ray Ryder Jr.

We have all gone through the fierce winds of trials and a few of our branches may even have been broken along the way, but what 2020 is helping us discover is that we are all far stronger than we ever knew.

~Amy Rees Anderson (author of the book “What Awesome Looks Like: How To Excel in Business & Life” )