forethought

Lately I've been feeling especially grateful for the forethought of my father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and great-great-grandfather.

I live on the family farm where they all lived before me. And they've left me the most beautiful and delicious legacy.

Apple, peach, and pear trees. Blackberry bushes. Maple, oak, walnut, and buckeye trees. And a grapevine.

I simply walk by the grapevine and feel loved as I am embraced by the sweet aroma of grapes warmed by the sun. And then I pop one in my mouth and it's like discovering grapes for the first time because they are so much sweeter than anything you get in the store.

There is nothing I did to deserve these riches. There is nothing I have done to create them or make them return and grow year after year. (They are a bit like God's grace you could say, which we don't earn or deserve or have any part in creating.)

But I have them and they are mine because 30, 50, and 100 years ago someone had the forethought to plant a seed. And little by little that seed grew. And now I have a forest of trees and bushes and grapes that make me feel loved.

Loved by a father I am blessed to see every day. Loved by a grandfather whose presence and wisdom I dearly miss. Loved by a great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather who I never even met. Loved.

EMBRACE FORETHOUGHT.

I wonder what I can do now to show love and life to a generation I will never meet...