See this pitiful little bloom? 

This is one of several of the good things that came from a bad thing that happened lately.

In July, we had a straight line windburst that came in front of a big storm and ripped over the hill and took down a lot of trees, sending branches that punched holes into the roof, 

some of which I could patch quickly like that one, some of which I couldn’t see and didn’t even know were there till the water dripped down into a closet and caused damage and all the fun that goes along with that… not complaining really, not when people out west have lost their whole houses and/or livelihood.  Just saying that it happened and that homeowners insurance is going to get a workout!  In a way, part of the blessing is that due to all the holes (one huge one, two medium ones and four little ones) we are getting a whole new roof and it was getting time for it anyway.   I got roofers out to temporarily patch things better on all the holes and the new roof will get done as soon as the busy roofers get to us.  LOTS of work for roofers around here lately!

Our side yard was shaded by a spreading branch of the giant beech tree that is on that side of the house.     This is the top of the tree, you can’t see where the branch was in this picture, because of all the other spreading branches.  It’s a very old tree though, I used to have a tire swing in a branch that can no longer be reached, and it was a giant when I was a child.

That top has been missing a long time, and even with problems, it’s very much a living tree.

That huge spreading branch had stretched out it’s greedy self to get as much sun as possible, and was very large and heavy because of the distance it was stretched.  It had been depriving what had once been a pretty little herb/flower garden of sunshine.  That same storm that damaged our roof tore the branch down,

that view hasn’t seen sunshine in the summer for many years, and as another small blessing, its massive twisted base (as thick as many trees) that came crashing down,

missed all the tops to our septic system, and I’d moved the sink I was taking to Suzanne for her basement so it missed that too.  MORE blessings! 

That rose at the top of the page though was one that my father had planted for my mother some time before she died over 10 years ago.  It had hung on and its roots had managed to stay alive with minimal leaves and very minimal sunshine, even though it probably didn’t have the energy to bloom, possibly since before she passed.  Today I walked out to go open the chicken coop and saw that single, pitiful, tiny, shabby, GLORIOUS blossom on the top of its spindly stem.    Two other bushes he planted for her that still got some afternoon sunshine have bloomed all along, if a bit anemically, but I’d overlooked that spindly stem until the sunshine begun to reach it and pushed it to bloom just this morning.

The branch missing the septic tank lids was very good,

getting a new roof when it was aging anyway was good, and that I’d moved the sink for no apparent reason was also good, but seeing that pitiful, shabby, rose blossom touched me more than any of them.

lavenderblue said:

Buckeye, you are the best at turning lemons into lemonade! Thank goodness you and yours were not hurt, those windbursts are bad, nasty things.

Oh now L-blue, let's not get carried away about me being so good with the lemonade thing!!  I spent the first week and then some alternately crying, cursing and freaking out!  Things finally steadied out though and fell into place, and the rose this morning was just a little icing on the cake, telling me to keep looking for the good things.  Once I really thought about it, I knew there was as much or more good than bad that came of it all.  The tears can only last so long and really don't help a bit after all, except to purge the emotions I suppose, then it's time to just get on with things.

Oh, and my kitties tell me to say that the remaining main large chunk of that branch that is left is a wonderful yard sculpture and cat climbing play area too!  That "stoopid" drooling doggie can't get them no matter how much he tries!  It's going to get trimmed back a little more and then left as a kittie playground!  (for a while at least!)