Building strong roots

I have a cottage on a lake in northern Michigan, surrounded by old and mighty trees. They persevere through the most ferocious blizzards and thunderstorms that come up out of the west.

Yet each spring, I find trees that have fallen towards the west, by winds that have come from the east. After some contemplation, I realized that the roots on the west side of the trees are deep and strong, because they are continually being tested by the weather. I also noticed that those on the east side of the tree are shallower and weaker, because they haven't been continually toughened by the prevailing winds.

We are all pretty adept at surviving the routine stresses of our lives (albeit with some less than healthy coping methods!). It is hard for us to see where our "roots" are shallow, opening us up to being suprised and knocked off balance by something unexpected storm.

Taking as little as 5 minutes a day, every day, to just stop and pay attention, to our breath, our bodies, our thoughts and our feelings, can help us deepen our "roots." We may bend and be tested by the weather of our lives, but with deep, strong roots all around us, we can keep standing through even the most trying storms.