I look on this scene with delight, knowing this kind of "play" is precursor to what will someday become a young man's work upon envisioning and planning his dreams and goals in life. Thinking back on it now, that delight and warm feeling was rooted in a deep sense of fulfillment... What I was in fact observing, was a realization of a vision and a dream for Nancy and me. We envisioned a home rich with opportunity for imagination and good old-fashioned play. And we set out... selling our big house in burbs to live in a smaller house on land and home school our children...

Our dreams have come true.

Proverbs 29:18...Where there is no vision, people perish...

Joel 2:28...And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions...

Praise Lord.

About three years ago, after Mama died, I noticed some green shoots coming up in vicinity of where moneymaker tree had been. I looked closely, and could see that it was a tiny pecan tree...springing forth from roots of that big ole tree that had fallen..New life!! I let it grow, and then there were two...side by side. I let them grow in memory of my Mama, and her twin sister. Those two trees, springing forth from root of old tree, are flourishing and are now 12 feet tall. The root system was already established, so trees could grow rapidly.

This experience has reminded me of a spiritual truth. Seeds planted long ago will continue to produce fruit. People are born, they die, yet there heritage lives on. A strong root system produces a healthy tree and shows me that we must be firmly rooted in Word of God.

That original moneymaker tree was planted, grew and became old..like us...yet its memory still lives on.

Psalm 92.14 "They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing."

Irvin L. Rozier, author of My Walk with Lord, www.selahbooks.com