In Praise of Pink Trees

I listen to talk radio on my way home. The question for today was, "If you had the opportunity to move from this area, would you and where would you go?" I thought about it for about 2 seconds and, regardless of the fact that my family is all within a 2 hour drive, I would elect to stay put. I can be on the beach in 15 minutes. I have been to New York City and back within a day. Philly is an hour away and I can be on a ski slope (not that I ski but Mark and I used to visit his mom's cabin in the poconos) in a couple of hours. If I travel a few miles down the road I can find cows and cornfields. We get hazy summers, radom blizzardy winters, and then there are my favorite seasons=fall and spring. If you walked into my house right now it looks like a fall explosion...all the warm colors, leaves, real acorns I've picked up while walking the dog, yummy scented candles, wreaths of berries and fading greens. And every spring as I turn onto my street, usually around late April, I thank God that He saw fit to create pink trees.

I've been blessed to have been able to visit MANY regions, mostly of the USA but also off the continent. I have enjoyed the fogginess of San Francisco, the mountains of Denver and Virginia, the almost undecipherable accents of Mississippi, the ungodly heat and humidity of Florida, the Tex-Mex uniqueness of San Antonio, etc. etc. etc. Great places to visit but not to settle in (for me, anyway).

Years ago I read through "The Purpose Driven Life" by Rick Warren which had quite a following. One of the things that resonated with me and that I often share with others if that God decided to bring two particular people together to create me in 1972 so that I would enter life then, in West Chester, PA, live in Delaware County, and eventually end up in South Jersey (until He says otherwise!) I am thankful that throughout my years, I could have made decisions that would probably have me living elsewhere right now (if I'd married so-n-so, if I hadn't switched majors from missions to psychology, if I'd taken the position created for me a few years ago that would have forced us to move up the Parkway closer to Newark, etc). Part of my covenant of faith has been to not only pray about decisions, but to listen...to LISTEN...and then respond and continue to trust that I am right where God wants me to be.

So I'm thankful that God has seen it fit thus far to keep me in an area where I can celebrate pink trees, crunchy leaves, crisp fall mornings, honeysuckle, crocuses...