I started down the trail, and I could hear so many sounds. The water was flowing over the rocks in the creek, the wind was blowing through the trees and into my ears, and the animals were moving all about. When I reached the edge of the creek, I stopped. I stood there as quiet as possible. The details I noticed absolutely amazed me. The new things that I saw, the new sounds that I heard, they were all so vibrant and alive.
I looked up into the trees and saw the branches draping over each other. Leaves were lying on the ground. The water from the creek was moving past my feet and was slowly being fed by melting ice sickles dripping down the rock’s edge. There were birds drinking, but now they stood quietly staring at me.
I noticed a single leaf falling down from above, and as that leaf fell down toward me, I watched and began to think. Life is so frail. I have a limited amount time here on earth. So what am I doing with it? I am told life is like a vapor, but do I show it by the way I live. Questions and concepts continued to run through my mind.
I knew that I didn’t want to forget this moment. I wanted to hang on to these thoughts forever. I needed to do something to take this with me. So I started to draw a picture on the paper I had.
While out in the woods that morning, I drew what I was feeling. The leaf is falling slowly, not in any hurry to reach the ground, and yet the leaf’s decent is still over in a matter of seconds. As the leaf falls, it really is never in control. The wind takes it and there’s nothing the leaf can do. It has to make the most out of wherever it is led.
As I watched and pondered on my own life in conjunction with what I had just witnessed with this leaf, here’s what I came to:
“My life is equivalent to the leaf falling to the ground. I cannot control everything around me. The more I seek control over my situations, the less I cherish the moments I have. I have to realize that God is in control, and I must begin looking for his purpose in my decent. I let the winds take me wherever they wish because I know that the Holy Spirit will guide me. I need to ask God to use me wherever I end up. There will be a day when I reach the ground, and my time will have run out. So I will be thankful for the time I have now. ”
