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Welcome to Stuff I Learned Yesterday. My name is Darrell Darnell, I’m thinking about trying a new burger recipe for dinner tonight, and I believe if you aren’t learning, you aren’t living. In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share a lesson I learned by planting a tree.
Today’s Fun Fact of the Day is: Memorial Day is a holiday here in the US that is set aside to remember and honor those who have died while serving in our armed forces. It was originally called Decoration Day and began as a way to honor those who died during the Civil War. It is now celebrated on the last Monday of May each year.
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What I Learned Yesterday:
A couple of months ago the arbor society of our town announced that they would be giving away free trees. Since I managed to kill the tree that was currently in our yard, Kari and I thought it would be a great opportunity to get a new tree. After all, the price would be impossible to beat.
The announcement said that they would begin handing out trees at noon, but Kari and I both had busy mornings planned. We determined that the earliest we could get there would be 1. Since the giveaway was on a Friday afternoon and not on a Saturday, we thought there might be some trees left when we showed up.
As quickly as we were able to get away, we headed over to the location. We were pleasantly surprised to learn that they were only out of one species. There were still 5 other types of trees to choose from. We gave them verification that we we were residents, and then selected a species. They brought us over a tree that would cause Charlie Brown to do a double take.
It was in a container that was about a foot deep and it was about 4 feet tall. The trunk was about 1 inch in diameter and it had no branches. It was literally a stick in a bucket. I really wasn’t sure if it was even alive. I looked at all the other trees, and they all looked the same. However, it was the first week of March and all the trees in our area are still dormant. Kari and I were thrilled to get a free tree.
We took it home, gave it some water, and made plans to plant it the following weekend. We were really excited to have gotten the tree and were looking forward to seeing how it would grow.
Later that night I noticed that the city posted a picture of the tree giveaway to their Facebook page. What I saw was quite surprising.
When we showed up, all the trees looked to be dormant and well, dead. The only trees that looked alive were the evergreen trees. There were still quite a few of them left, so we didn’t think much of it. However, the picture must have been taken when the giveaway started. It show a LOT of lush, green trees. Trees that Charlie Brown and Lucy would have been proud of.
I sat there and looked at the picture for a bit and then showed to Kari. She was also quite surprised at what she saw. I thought about the situation for a bit, and here’s what I learned.
There was nothing wrong with my tree. When we showed up, we were happy to learn that there were still a variety of trees available. When we drove away from the lot, we were excited about our free tree and grateful that it we had been given the chance to get one.
It wasn’t until we saw what other people had that we felt different about our tree. When we saw that picture, suddenly our tree seemed inferior and insufficient. My first reaction was to feel less content with our tree. I didn’t want our tree any longer, I wanted a tree like the ones in the picture.
Fortunately, those feelings didn’t last too long. I soon saw the error of my thinking.
You see, I had a chance to get a better looking tree but I didn’t take advantage of it. Yes, I had a perfectly legitimate reason for not being able to show up at noon, but that does not mean that I was treated unfairly. I got there an hour late, and I got the best that was available at that time.
I got a free tree. I few days later I went by my local home improvement store and they had trees for sale. I saw several trees that looked identical to my Charlie Brown tree that were selling for $30. The city said they were giving away free trees and that’s exactly what they delivered.
The opportunity was the same. All of those who showed up in time left with the same thing. We all left with opportunity in a bucket. Sure, some of them left with a greener looking opportunity than I did, but we all left with the opportunity to take what was in that bucket and make it into something bigger.
I was perfectly happy and content until I took my eyes off of what I had and compared it to my neighbor. This is often a dangerous move. When we look at what others have, it often leads to feelings of jealousy and discontentment.
So here’s what I did. I went to the store and got some nutrient rich soil that was designed for trees and I planted my tree using that soil. I watered it and cared for it. Guess what? Within no time it started sprouting branches and springing to life.
We don’t all get the same beginnings. We don’t all get the same gifts. We definitely don’t get equal treatments in life. But if we focus on what we have and do what’s necessary to nurture what we DO have, then the odds are very good that it will grow into what we wish we had.
I’m Darrell Darnell and this has been stuff I learned yesterday.
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