Five Minute Friday - Break

This post may contain affiliate links - using affiliate links from A Fresh Cup of Coffee helps continue the coffee breaks and conversation. 

One word. Five minutes to write about it. This is the idea behind Five Minute Friday and this is today's free-writing post.

give me a break

break a leg

break it up

bend but don't break

********************

Virtuous persons and fruit-laden trees bow, but fools and dry sticks break because they do not bend. ~Chanakya

I've often heard sayings like this one about learning to bend so that you don't break. Like a strong tree. It's a pretty good analogy, because if you get too rigid and refuse to give, you can be destroyed. Having observed a lot of downed trees after storms, I've noticed there are two basic kinds of broken trees. There are trees of all sizes that have branches broken off. Sometimes very large branches, but the tree itself is still standing despite the damage and loss. There are also trees, usually quite large, that are uprooted. Either the roots weren't deep or strong enough to withstand the shearing wind, or the ground was too saturated or eroded to continue to support the tree. Those trees are blown over in one piece, but wind up broken when they hit a building or the ground; or they are broken by the cleanup crews with their chainsaws.

Fate is like a storm. You can let it bend you, or you can make it break you. One way or the other, the storm always has its way. ~R. Lee Smith

So the most important factor for the tree is actually the roots. Not just the ability to bend and give in the wind.

The same is true of us. We may be flexible and able to withstand the storms of life, but if our roots don't go down deep and strong into stable soil, we are still at risk of being taken down. Even the suppleness of a 'bendable' tree depends on its roots, because insufficient nutrients and water from the soil mean the plant may start to dry up. A dry and undernourished tree doesn't produce fruit the way a tree with healthy roots does.

Blessed is the one

who does not walk in step with the wicked

or stand in the way that sinner take

or sit in the company of mockers,

but whose delight is in the law of the LORD,

and who meditates on his law day and night.

That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,

which yields its fruit in season

and whose leaf does not wither―

whatever they do prospers.

~Psalm 1:1-3~

Human relationships are primary in all of living. When the gusty winds blow and shake our lives, if we know that people care about us, we may bend with the wind . . . but we won't break. ~Fred Rogers

Put roots down deep into good soil that provides a stable foundation. God's Word. Supportive relationships with family and with God's people. Healthy habits for spirit, mind, and body. Allow God to work in you to produce fruit, and allow him to prune away anything unhealthy. He will not beat you up when you've been damaged by the storms of life or chop you down if you're wounded. He'll support you and heal the broken branches.

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,

they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;

planted in the house of the LORD,

they will flourish in the courts of our God.

They will still bear fruit in old age,

they will stay fresh and green,

proclaiming, "The LORD is upright;

he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him."

~Psalm 92:12-15~

A bent reed He will not break off

And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish;

He will faithfully bring forth justice.

~Isaiah 42:3~

********************

No matter how our hearts break, we bend toward life, don't we? We bend toward hope. ~Anonymous

********************

This post is linked at Five Minute Friday for the word prompt "Break".

This post is also linked at Inspire Me Monday hosted by Anita Ojeda

 Don't miss a coffee break! Subscribe to A Fresh Cup of Coffee by email link coming soon. 

 ©2006-2023 HS Coffee Break/Just A Second/A Fresh Cup of Coffee. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. https://morecoffeebreaks.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.