I know of a country church.

It’s an old building with old pews.

It’s a place of peace.

There’s a small cemetery right next door.

And in that cemetery are two trees.

They stand by the side of the road.

They stand together.

Together they look as though they make just one tree.

But they are two.

So beautiful and so tall.

I can’t imagine one without the other.

They seem to be keeping each other company.

Their message to me is in such stark contrast to what the cemetery seems to be saying.

I look at the stones lined up in the yard and I wonder how we do it.

Saying goodbye.

Feeling left behind.

Feeling so incomplete you actually look down to see if there is a hole in your chest.

Looking for the physical evidence of the pain you feel.

You catch a glimpse of those trees.

So perfect together.

So right.

A life fully lived will understand the story the trees tell and also the story of the stones.

So, I smile.

They are a beautiful symbol of love.

Oh the many tears that this ground has absorbed.

Oh to love and to be loved.

The leaves will gently rustle in the summer breeze and I will come to see them, to walk between them.

I thank them for reminding me how amazingly beautiful love is.

I thank God for letting me share in his creation.

These trees tell me that I am not alone.

They say, “I’m not going anywhere.”

“Not without you.”

We cannot make that promise to one another.

But God can.