Posted April 26, 2016 "Just a Tree"

I started my life as a tree. Nothing really special or unique, although I like to think my branches were just a little fuller than those other trees. Time passed and I grew tall and strong until my harvest time came. It was an exciting and scary time. I knew my life was about to be changed but I wasn’t sure in what way. As a tall tree there’s so many places I could be taken, so many paths I could go down. I could be made a foot bridge in a park for young couples on their first walk. I could be be made a beam in a house for a newlyweds first home. I could even be made into a shelf that would carry books and memories for years to come. When the lumber man finally came to me he looked up at me, placed a hand on my side, lowered his head muttered something and then cut me down. He loaded me up onto a truck with a bunch of my friends and we were off to our next great adventure.

We were all very excited and talking about all the “What ifs” we might face. We arrived at the yard and look at the sign, “Hand Crafted Pews” is what the sign read. “A pew???” I said to myself. “Seriously I spent that whole time to be made into a bench to be put in a building that people don’t even live in!” “I’d rather be made into firewood so I can keep a family warm!” But I didn’t have much say in the matter. Us trees aren’t too good at human speech with the lack of vocal cords and such. So I was planed down into planks and assembled into a long bench and sent to some very sweet old lady. I never got her name but she seemed like a Mildred to me so I’ll call her Mildred. She went to work with stuffing and fabric and before I knew it I was all upholstered. “Hmmm… this is squishy” I said to myself. “Mildred does good work! Maybe this won’t be so bad after all.” At that Mildred turned to look at me almost as if she knew what I was thinking. “You’re bound to do great things” she said as she walked out the door. At this point I was humbled and a little creeped out. Humans aren’t supposed to be able to hear us trees. I was moved to a display window and sat there for only a couple weeks before a man came in. From what I gathered he was starting a church and the building had just been finished, now they were looking for furniture to fill it. He walked over to me and looked at me and said “ooooh squishy, I think this one will do perfect!” He placed an order for a few more that would be designed to look like me. “Oh great” I thought, not only am I going to get dragged into a big empty building but I’m not even going to be unique! I’m going to be stuck with a bunch of others who look just like me!” 

The day came when the order was due and I, along with my new look-a-like friends were loaded into a truck and driven to this little building out in the field. There was an air of excitement around the building as we were unloaded. The carpet had just been laid down and people started to set us up and measure out where we would be at. I’d love to say I was placed front and center, But I wasn’t. I wasn’t even in the back, I was placed smack dab in the center of the group. Nothing special at all. The first service came and the building was packed to the seams. It was my first day of my long career as a butt holder. It wasn’t so bad. Mostly little old ladies with the occasional “double wide” as we had started to call them. As time when on I started to notice things and see things. I started to realize I was more than just a butt spot. Sure, people used me to sit on all the time but they would make a connection with me. The same sweet little old lady would sit in the same spot every Sunday and do her needle point before the service. For weddings I was decorated with bows and used as part of a celebration. For funerals I became an armrest and a place of comfort for those who were sad. And for the occasional Youth sleepover I was everything you could imagine. A chair for lessons, a hiding place for games, and I was even a bed for when they finally decided to get some sleep. They all thought I was very squishy. 

I realized I wasn’t just an ordinary bench. I could be exactly what someone needed when they needed it the most. A bench, a table, a place to kneel, and even a bed. Sure I would have loved to be part of a house, or shelf, or a door, or even a bit of firewood, but I wasn’t called to be any of those things. I was called by my Father to be a place of comfort. Mildred was right when she said I was going to do great things. I’m not sure where I will end up when my service here is up but I know that wherever it is, it will be right where I’m supposed to be.