17 Nov 2025 ~ PRUNED

I paid another visit to Stonehaven today. My aim was to take a better photo of the notice board commemorating Sarah. I was hoping to get a nice picture where the board is surrounded by beautiful roses, but it turned out to be another day of disappointment. The sign was there, but what happened to the roses?

Since my last visit, the rose garden has gone through extensive pruning. In fact, the person tending the garden was still busy removing branches from the plants. Where he was done, nothing remained but sad-looking stems and a few leaves trying to cover up the bareness that was left behind after the pruning scissors did what was needed to be done.

I know how it feels to be pruned, to be stripped of your dignity. Life can do that to you sometimes. When it happens to you, it always leaves a mark in your heart and in your soul. You never get to the other side without wounds and bruises. They will heal over time, and you will bloom once again, but you will always carry the scars that bear witness to the severity of the event. And even though you may have the hope of blooming again, in that moment of pruning, it feels as if your world will never be the same again.

The death of a loved one, being diagnosed with cancer, or going through a divorce can be such pruning events. But it does not have to be so extreme. It can be something like relocating or retirement. 

All I know for sure is that life’s pruning has a lasting impact on your whole being…