Just Picking Weeds, Together
What do you see?
What do you think?
What do you wonder?
I recently was driving to an appointment and captured this sweet scene (picture taken at a red light). It was a typical day of morning routines and work routines with a mundane dental appointment later in the day. It was also a typical Spring day with sites of cherry trees and red bud trees showing off their glory along the way. Blades of green bermuda and zoysia were beginning to peak upward toward their source of life and renewal. And then there was this elderly couple, slowly and gently bending down to snag various intruders in their lawn from infringing upon the purity of their grass. At first glance, it seemed like typical, mundane yard chores they may have felt obligated to get done. It hit me as I studied their slow bending and careful stepping – what a beautiful, sweet moment this is! In all the typical, mundane components of the day, there was so much beauty on display in this scene.
Studying the scene started with simply seeing or observing what’s there. The seeing led me to thinking about the whole scene, more deeply considering what’s happening. These initial steps eventually led me to wondering…to questioning…to a level of curiosity about the scene. Once I sat down to jot down some of my reflections, I remembered a thinking routine Harvard’s graduate school of education put out in their Project Zero initiative several years back. The “See, Think, Wonder” thinking routine leads you through these progressive steps to aid in taking your thoughts beyond the surface. It’s a fun routine to implement in a small group, class setting, or dinner table.
Here are a few of the reflections I jotted down from the beautiful scene:
I see…an older couple/set of friends with white hair, just picking weeds in their front yard on a beautiful Spring day; blue skies; more greens coming out; friendship; commitment; care for nature; care for one another; gentleness; goodness
I think…the couple/friends enjoys being together and enjoys doing things together; each is for the other; they’ve been together for a long time; they did activities together throughout their life; love is a commitment; friendship takes work just like maintaining a yard takes work;
I wonder…how long they’ve been friends; how they navigate peaks and valleys in life; how they met; what other activities/hobbies they have engaged in together; what advice they’d give to me and others; what they hope for in all their tomorrows.
What do you see…think…wonder?
Through the mundane, typical flow of a day, the Lord graced me with a beautiful picture like this one. Their simply being together, just picking weeds together, blessed me. It reminded me that gospel love is not a feeling but a commitment, a truth and reality regarding love that seems lost in society. It reminded me that friendships and marriages take work just like having and maintaining a yard takes work. If you do not work to – just pick weeds together – then the beauty of friendship, commitment, love will be lost. It might get lost by weeds making their way into it; it might get lost by neglecting it.
Similarly, my walk with Christ takes work just like having and maintaining a yard takes work. Making church a priority community in my family’s life takes work and effort (I am not claiming salvation and sanctification require good works here…I believe salvation and sanctification are by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone). Making time for regular Bible reading and journaling takes work and effort. Making time for regular household worship and discipleship takes work and effort. Memorizing and discussing scripture takes work and effort. We have to be aware of weeds growing up in our spiritual lives…and when we do, we have to bend over and snag the various intruders constantly vying for our attention and devotion, pull them up and discard them, together. Just like this elderly couple. We’ve got to just pick weeds, together.
Written by Warren M. Grimm