January 19, 2014

365 2014 Day 18 Winter Tree

By In 365 Project 2014, Feature
Vulnerable Beauty
Vulnerable Beauty

How I love you, winter tree. Your elegant limbs, now uncovered and exposed, stretch and curl into the sky with effortless grace. I can fully see you now. The cheerful clapping of summer is long gone. Do you mind the silence, winter tree? I can hear my heart beating again when I am with the you.

I want to be like you, for you know something well that I am just beginning to grasp.  You seem to understand that vulnerability is not to be feared, but embraced. True beauty is found in fragility. When I finally surrender my own coverings and allow myself to be seen, God himself rushes in to draw my roots deep into himself.

He is both my foundation and my sky, and I am held beautifully in between. Just like winter tree.

Psalm 62:5-8 ~”Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
    my hope comes from him.
 Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
    he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
 My salvation and my honor depend on God;
    he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
 Trust in him at all times, you people;
    pour out your hearts to him,
    for God is our refuge.”

11 Comments
  1. Cindy Rogers January 19, 2014

    This is so beautiful. Thanks for sharing.

  2. Patricia January 19, 2014

    Hi Mary Anne,
    So happy to find you through Ann Voskamp’s blog. I read through your ‘about me’ and some of your recent posts. Beauty is what I found. I don’t have a blog or website. Maybe one day I will. But through the ones I visit, have found encouragement, strength and the love of God. Have followed Ann Voskamp’s ‘A Holy Experience’ for many years, and also Stephanie Neilsen’s ‘Nie Nie Dialogues’. I am adding you to the precious two..that’s if you don’t mind me hanging around. I came to Christ later in life. At the age of 41, I lost my mom. That’s when my life turned upside down. That was 12yrs this July. I know God was working well before my mom’s death. I’ve been married for 32 yrs in June to my soulmate, have 3 grown children (Kaitlyn 28, Sarah 26 & Mattt 22) ….. And my oldest daughter and her hubby have given us a beautiful grand baby, Sydney, born in April 2013! Hubby has recently retired from 32 yrs as a police officer,. We moved to a small community 2 hours away from where we brought up the kids. Being here and having more time has me wanting to pick up some photography skills. What a beautiful thing you have here and what you have captured in your photographs is breathtaking! Sweet blessings, Patricia

  3. Kitty Swing January 19, 2014

    “He is both my foundation and my sky, and I am held beautifully in between.”

    This will be the worship of my day, today.

  4. Lucas January 19, 2014

    Your work is so inspiring. Thanks for sharing.

  5. maryanne January 19, 2014

    Thank you Lucas. I am honored that you stopped by. I feel the same way about yours. Your writing is so fluid and seems effortless. (Although I am sure it is not. Good writing never is.) Your post about Sabrina was so moving. Thank you.

  6. Liza January 19, 2014

    This is my first post I have received from you after seeing your beauty the other day. Thank you so much for sharing your joyous work with us! Love your reminder to us of how deeply God loves us and how you point it out in His extremely beautiful creation he made for us to enjoy. You have a striking way of capturing this in photos. Keep sending them our way please… I love also the way you add a related scripture verse each day. That is the icing on the cake!

  7. maryanne January 21, 2014

    Thank you Liza! I am so glad to know you stopped by!

  8. maryanne January 21, 2014

    Thank you Patricia. So nice to meet you. Welcome.

  9. […] cold nights that forced us indoors and gathered us around warm fires and hot soup. I will miss your winter trees that elegantly framed the clear night skies. I am not ready for the busyness that comes with […]

  10. Sue September 11, 2014

    love lone trees, another wonderful image and reflection:)

  11. maryanne September 11, 2014

    Thank you Sue! So glad you stopped by.

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.