Green shoots grasp at the afternoon air. Some have become full grown leaves, taking in sunlight and air for nighttime photosynthesis. Elegantly gnarled, the trunk twists following the three lines of heaven, earth, and man. One and a half feet curls the bonsai tree.
In and out and around, he weaves a web of incomprehensible beauty. Beauty that speaks to his origins. A little seed, struggling to survive in the fabricated tropical atmosphere. Finally, he breaks through the surface of the soil to experience the light and air.
Soon, a man comes over and begins to tie him down at painful angles. Still he grew. The bonds moved while he continued growing in that direction; then, the bonds appeared again at a different angle, turning him back from where he came from. The pain. The confusion. All he wanted was to grow up and stand tall.
Only later does the bonsai realize that the forced turns and bonds gave him the grace and beauty he now enjoys. In the same way, our Lord gives us commandments and callings that may seem to bind us down; yet, these very bonds will be the path to a bright and elegant future.
