April 23 – “Stump Grind”

Chris is home.  Now that's some good news.  No roofers at the house.  Not so good news.  She really liked the cabinets.  Lots of oohing and aahing.  And she liked her surprise, too.  Noticed it right away.  Here it is … I hired a guy with a stump grinder to get rid of the huge stump in the front yard.  Talk about something that looks different.  Now we need to add some dirt to the new mulch, and maybe some grass will grow.  Chris is already planning a crepe myrtle tree and some Indian Hawthorne bushes in the front.  Those bushes are going to go in the front flower bed.  That brings me to the second part of the surprise, the remains of which are still stacked out next to the Pot-O-Gold.  I dug out some of the bigger roots from the tree.  The two biggest (about four inches in diameter) ran right along the front of the house at the foundation.  They were a nightmare to get out.  Besides being just plain heavy, every time I'd get one to move a few inches, another root would uncover itself, and I'd have to get that one first.  At one point I even uprooted some bulbs Chris planted.  I was pulling roots all over the yard.  I finally got the tree branch trimmer and started cutting instead of pulling.  And did I mention that it was really hot?  I went through three t-shirts and I lost count of how many bottles of water.  By the time I finished I was beat.    And so to today.  I spent part of the morning downstairs doing some more salvage cleaning.  In fact I got so wrapped up in it that I lost track of time.  Before I knew it, it was time to head to Seaside to teach the kids.  I didn't eat until after Chris got home and we took her to the house.  We went to IHOP and had some pancakes.  Breakfast at night is always a fun change.   Oh, and one last tidbit of good news.  We saw a leaf on the pecan tree.  Massive tree.  One tiny leaf.  Hope. Psalms 62:5-8 says, "Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.  He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.  My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge.  Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge."   Father, thanks for those tiny little leaves of hope in the midst of my giant pecan trees of stress.  Amen.