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Three Jack Pine Stories
Jack Pine Story #1:
Wild jack pines begin life in the aftermath of a devastating fire.
That’s not a coincidence; it’s a strategy. It begins with the seeds, many of which are sealed inside the cones with resin, which protects them from drying out.
My wife’s beloved 96-year-old mother has dementia, and she’s been in her own home now for forty-seven years — cared for during the past five years by live-in aides. We knew that if she lived long enough, the impressive amount of money that she and her husband had saved during their lifetime would eventually run out. But we thought it would be end of summer or sometime later this year.
We just met with our accountant and…it’s now. It’s, like, right now. She needs to be moved in by February, and the house has to be listed by March.
After the meeting, we sat there and looked at each other. Our minds and hearts galloping to catch up, then screeching to a halt, then galloping again, we couldn’t even find words. We went to bed, each of us awake, our seeds of growth and resilience safe inside the resin of our willingness to step up. And both of us terrified just the same.
