Two Trees

A farmer once planted two apple seeds on the side of a wind-blown hill. The first seed was from a nearby orchard that had stood for many years and the seeds from its trees were usually planted only on his farm. The second seed was from an orchard far away. Seeds from this orchard were planted in many parts of the land.  

As the seeds began to grow they sent up shoots that sought out the sun and the moon.  The first grew tall and slender. She would labor hard to grow straight and resilient, bending with the wind. 

You are my anchor

We are held by a chain of our own making.

Like that chain, my love for you is inviolate.

 You are my anchor.  

The Archer’s Paradox

My neighbor Annie came to me one day and asked if I would teach her how to shoot a bow. I’ve been an archer for many years and, at 18, she had taken an interest in my daily regimen of stringing my bow, stretching, and shooting arrow after arrow into the target I had set up against the back wall of my garage. Today she would learn something about discipline and self-control by merely noting the seemingly haphazard flight of an arrow…something called “the archer’s paradox.”