As I mentioned in my previous article, The Heart of a Giver, my daughter seems to have really gotten it when it comes to this giving thing. The rest of the family is on the path, some of us just drift off into the weeds occasionally. After all, even the most disciplined giver can get distracted when tempted by a pair of animal print Guess heels or the latest Wii game that happens to be laying in our line of sight, albeit slightly off the path, tucked neatly in between a bull nettle and a patch of crab grass.
(It has recently come to my attention, over a bottle of red wine with friends, that the term “bull nettle” might not be as universal as I once thought. For those of you that were not raised in rural East Texas and grew up without it being in your best interest to know how to spot and avoid bull nettles, a bull nettle is a tall weed that can grow to three or four feet. It looks like any other enormous weed in a cow pasture with the exception of the fine, soft needles that cover its leaves. The slightest brush of your skin against these needles will make you wish you fell head first into a fire ant mound instead.)
I realize digressing into the definition of poisonous native Texas plants might seem odd, but stay with me, I’m going somewhere with this. You see, I have found material possessions that are off the path I’m supposed to follow, are always tucked next to the spiritual equivalent of a bull nettle. True, I can sometimes acquire the item while avoiding the bull nettle all together. Eventually, however, the bull nettle gets me. Maybe just a pinkie finger here, or the back of my hand there. There has been the acquisition of things in my life, however, that have caused a full body dive into the middle of a bull nettle patch. And boy am I sorry then, and for a long time to come.
So, one of my missions is to teach my children this lesson so that when they are my age, they are not being stung by spiritual bull nettles caused by the pursuit of stuff. I don’t always feel well equipped (OK, never) to teach my children in this area. (I really like stuff.) So, I’m always looking for opportunities to help myself, so I can pass it along.
