I would like you to meditate on the message of this story that was sent to me by a special person.

There was a man who lived in the desert and had four teenage sons.

He wanted his children to learn the valuable life lesson of not being judgmental, so he sent them to a orchard in a faraway land. Each son was sent during a different season of the year.

His first-born went during the winter, the second in the spring, the third in the summer, and the youngest in the fall.

After the youngest son returned, the father gathered all his children and asked them to describe what they had seen.

The first-born son said that the trees were slightly curved and ugly; very unappealing.

The second son disagreed. He said the trees were green, in bloom and looked like they were going to give good fruit.

The third son said that they were both wrong because the tree branches were so heavy with fruit that they were starting to curve. They smelled incredible and looked beautiful.

The youngest son disagreed with them all. He described how the tree branches bowed over from the weight of so much fruit. Everyone was able to envision a place full of life and abundance.

The father then explained to his teenage children that they were all correct.

The truth is that all of his sons visited the same orchard and saw the same trees but during different seasons of the year.

He explained how they couldn’t judge a tree, or people by that matter, based on one season or phase of their life.

He said that the essence of who we are can’t be based solely on moments of joy, happiness, and love but also on the hard times in our life. The judgment of someone’s life should only take place in the end; after they’ve completed all the seasons of their lives.

If you give up during the “winter”, you’ll miss out on the promises of spring, the beauty of summer and the bounty of autumn.

Don’t allow the pain of one “season” to destroy the happiness of all the others. Don’t judge life because of one difficult phase.

Persevere in your walk down the difficult paths of life and certainly better times will come!

Live simply, love generously, care deeply and speak kindly…

And leave the rest to God!

Happiness keeps you sweet.

Sorrows keep you human.

Downfalls keep you humble.

Success keeps you glowing.

Trials keep you strong.

But only God can give you the strength to continue!