"...memories more than a tree..."

Memories more than a tree

We plant trees in memory

Those we love live on

Trees planted in memory are far more than trees alone

You can hear their voices and laughter at the tree,

Encouragement and smiles and quiet appreciation too

Leaves lay at our feet now, regrets, "unthink a thought, unthink a word or choice" Love needs to surface instead, 

"One eye on regretless eternity" *

“…we are all connected, watching one another, even the trees” **

Generations that follow sit under the trees

Oblivious to the history, the memories

Laughter, eating, professor and class review, fine times over and over

“To be there for somebody and somebody there for you is wonderful”

Spring and fall the same, blossoms and falling leaves, branching high and vigorous lives, 

Roots run deep but rarely seen

Blossoms in spring

colorful banners in fall

We have seen the seasons change

Year after year but it doesn’t register, this breath of life, daunting pace

A tree planted three decades ago for the willow that once grew

Another wedding day, family time, wake, and passage of time

Now stands alight on the street in autumn flair

So many days bright in our life we say things like;

“What a beautiful day!” and “What a day this was!”

Today the sky is an ocean and trees are on fire with light

Today, yellow, enthusiastic woods

Yellow against the bluest sky

God surely lifts up and made this day,

Imagine that, as we look up

“He bends down to look at the sky and the earth.” ***

Vigorous blooming and peaceful rest as we cheer and toast the day

"Let life be beautiful like summer flowers and death like autumn leaves.****

Memories, more than a tree,

Glimpse poetry by Joe Holuta

*  Paul David Tripp, Lost in The Middle- Midlife and The Grace of God

** Arthur Miller, Timebends: A Life

*** Ps.113.6 NET

**** Nobel Prize-winning Bengali poet and novelist, Rabindranath Tagore

Oak grove memorial trees

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"...yellow...'

Yellow

Yellow is the color of the sunshine, and the warmth we feel on special days

Creativity and happiness, yellow against the bluest sky

Yellow the aspen leaves quake and tremble and whisper autumn's peaceful song

Leaves dropping now like snowflakes, gently falling and covering the forest floor 

Yellow is caution as we know it, dark side too, cowardice, vainglory
But then look at that blue

Pestilence, and the color of loved ones jaundiced from brokenness
Look again the contrasting colors, yellow and bluest blue, a whistle to look up and live, a short time in this season

Yellow so many times the fear, overcomes
But then look at that blue

Look at that contrast, hope's surprise displayed on the canvas of a fall morning sky and in life

Yellow the ferns that once were green, spreading fragrance through the trees, bowing now in the autumn breeze, but will come alive again

Yellow an enthusiastic goodbye to the leaves, soon will be brown and then wintering

Optimistic they sleep to spring  

Yellow lifts the spirits as the morning star

Call it to mind every day, mercies new, in Revelation, a grand display

"The morning star appears at the darkest time of the night

No sign of the dawn. But when it appears....

Night cannot withstand the dawn

The dawn wipes the night away.1"

"I will give him the Morning star2"

"I am ... the radiant bright Morning Star3"

"Look at the stars, look how they shine for you

And everything you do yeah, they were all yellow...

You know I love you so, I swam across, I jumped across for you

Oh, what a thing to do...4"

Yellow, Glimpse poetry, by Joe Holuta

"How wonderful yellow is. It stands for the sun."

  -Vincent Van Gogh

1. Discipleship on the Edge, Darrell Johnson. p 95

2. Revelation 2:28 

3. Revelation 22:16

4. Yellow, Coldplay, Yellow lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Mgb. Ltd.

“…legacy…”

Legacy 

A fine tree, along a well-trodden path, years of growth, times of soaking,

Nourishing in its roots and branches, like family trees

Roots run deep, in times of strain, love- deeper still

We received from our ancestors; we pass it on.

Live well and leave something of lasting value, “innermost of the innermost”

Far greater than monetary or material inheritance 

As the children grew the occasion fleeting,

A blink a moment in time, “as a moment’s foam upon the breaker, such are we”

Memory upon memory so precious and fine.

Grandchildren born a heritage to bond this day

To long ago, and to tomorrow.

History, the thread of life, “family register”, none smaller or greater

So, your days and years together have been many.

And the love knowable as the rising and setting sun.

Your hearts and care among, rise above any.

Hearts anchored, bound to one another's care.

While trial and turn have past as the seasons change

Love, understanding and legacies do remain.

The one thing we have seen bright as the new day is

The promise of the day, seeing your faces, wishing we would have “given more away”

What will we be known for when we leave this earth? 

Leave behind legacies,

Live on in the hearts of the people you touch,

Principles, wisdom, humor, thanksgiving 

Outspreading to friends; generation to generations.

“Tell us old things over again”,

“Make a mark”

Your history, your dreams, your passions, your breath, legacies remain 

“It’s the only way I know how to breathe,”

“…the standing stones you place throughout your life

Passing the values, faith-lessons," and driving spirit 

To family, others and generations that follow.

Life lived so fully, issuing of life

that no vessel could have,

Oh, the memories, the time.

Oh, the time, the beautiful weaving of life

Though at times a desire to reach back overwhelms...

Future hope does not allow for it, casting down any crowns, when all else fades

legacy goes on

“Time really is a circle. I can see that now.”

But then you look and see... 

The newness, surrounding beauty,

True joy, contentment, 

Don’t sell your memories,  

Get each day and live it fully for the memories must be cause for gratitude,

Fashioned and lived to remain...

 “There is no greater way to love than to give your life for your friends.” (John 15:13)

Legacy, Glimpse poetry, by Joe Holuta

 

“…October maple …”

October Maple

The maple vibrant with orange, yellow , green and red colors, backdrop of October sky

Tree limbs reaching, 

Leaves of amber, crimson, auburn, lurid and scarlet to the bluest sky 

The day, so bright, the day he was born , gratitude so glad

God gives great pleasure this autumn birthday

Fallen leaves , a bright-colored resting place to lay and rest your head

A son, a brother, a friend, 

Memories surpass the imagination 

Pictures together, a collage, a photomontage that could fill a room

Back then no idea of the lively times ahead 

Nor the trimming and struggle for light in this life as crowded trees reach and grow and shade together 

Fleeting years and the October maple grows, cycle of life,

Seasons of maples, sugaring sap in the spring , winged seeds, leaves sprout then end with colorful rain

Tree limbs grow higher, shade and shelter 

Some limbs grow old, brittle and fall , 

Shaded from the sun by taller trees beside,

Hope in the enduring ,

Remaining ones vibrant and reaching taller still

The air is filled with celebration and

the aroma of fresh baked apple and pumpkin pies, 

Ears filled with sound of laughter of young ones climbing the tree that generations climbed , 

Dreaming in the treetop, swaying

sails in the cool October breeze, 

Sailing to destinations unknown

“A to Z, Beginning to End, season boundaries, 

All the in between , lives bracketed”*

“Seasons will change, colors will fade

But I know that You remain”**

October Maple, 

Glimpse poetry by Joe Holuta

*Thought from Discipleship on the Edge, Darrell Johnson , Chapter  ‘Keeping Faith Under Pressure.

** You Remain (feat. Meredith Mauldin and Elyssa Smith) // Live - UPPERROOM

https://youtu.be/lFQU6NOgaCw

About this Poem: October Maple 🍁 is a poem about the joy of October 25, 1986, when our son Jonathan Paul was born. The maple tree in our yard was so vibrant in color, brilliant reds, yellows, and orange colors against a blue sky.

We have so many memories together as a family, and some of them include climbing to the maple treetop, swaying in the wind. The next generation that includes Jon’s children, now play and enjoy the same tree that brought so much joy to us over the years. Seasons change, but God’s love remains, bracketing our lives with love, protection, and direction both in the pleasant and in the hard times!  - Joe Holuta