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diff --git a/src/md/37_The_Blackberry_Wars.md b/src/md/37_The_Blackberry_Wars.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..238c723 --- /dev/null +++ b/src/md/37_The_Blackberry_Wars.md @@ -0,0 +1,57 @@ +--- +title: The Blackberry Wars +--- + +Life Lessons: + +- Take care of a problem early before it becomes a monster. +- Opposition enhances our appreciation of the good times. +- Adversity is our friend, not our enemy. Embrace it. + +Since Lori and I moved into the Ridgefield homestead house in the summer +of 2006, I have been waging a war with the deadly blackberry invasion +that has opened up on many fronts around the property. One of the most +sorely contested spots is on the north end of the barn below the house. +At this location, the vines have attained a height of about 14 feet and +threaten to engulf the whole north end of the building. The photo below +will give you some idea of the seriousness of the problem. + +{width="6.5in" +height="4.875in" alt=""} + +Now this is a war that can never be won. As soon as the obnoxious vines +have been eradicated in one place, they will spring up in another place +and establish a new base of operations for the conflict. Any place where +the birds like to land and lighten their load, the blackberry seeds in +their droppings will happily start a new infestation. Thus, the conflict +is eternal. I can hope to win an occasional battle in one place, but I +have no hope of ever winning the war outright. + +After fighting this war for so many years, I have gained a great deal of +admiration for the committee that was assigned the task of making good +on the promise to create the "thistles and thorns and noxious weeds to +afflict and torment man." These folks must be real over-achievers and +the blackberry plant must have been their crowning achievement. + +However, upon reflection, I have reconciled myself to the importance of +the lessons learned as a consequence of this war. Lesson number one: +Take care of a problem early instead of waiting until it has grown into +a 14-foot-high mountain of terrifying thorns. The effort to fix it is +many times greater if you put off dealing with it when it is still +small. Lesson number 2: This mortal experience was not meant to be a +Garden of Eden. How could I possibly appreciate the beauty of a +magnificently manicured garden without experiencing the opposite +condition. In fact, the level of appreciation is directly proportional +to the severity of the opposition. Sometime in the future, when I have a +chance to meet the members of the "thorn" committee, I will personally +give each one of them a big hug for giving me my impressive capacity to +appreciate the opposite condition. Lesson number 3: We should not be +afraid of adversity. In fact, every time it raises its ugly head, we +should be ecstatic. Blessings that can be obtained in no other way are +just around the corner. I can't count all the blessings that my war +with the blackberries has brought me. I am stronger and wiser because of +it. + +In fact, I wish you all the same good fortune. May your lives all be +infested with lots of lovely thorns and thistles. You'll all thank me +some day, I promise. |