October 10, 2018
Different Woods
Have you ever split wood? As a child, I watched my Daddy split wood for a fireplace when we stayed at a cabin in the Smoky Mountains. We camped all the time, so being in a cabin was a little different for us – we were actually going to spend that Christmas in an A-frame cabin with a big fireplace! I was young, but remember being so excited. We were praying for snow!
I’d helped chop wood a few times before this, but it was never splitting big round logs, it was always just cutting small roots or scrap wood from fallen trees discovered in the backyard so the scrap bits would fit in our firepit. I’d always used this tiny ax. (Daddy called it a hatchet, and although he said “the Indians in Davy Crocket used weapons exactly like this,” we were warned NEVER to play with the hatchet. We made “hatchets” out of wood to run around like Indians instead.)
At the cabin, Daddy was using the BIG ax, it had about a three foot handle, maybe four feet, with a weighted gleaming head. Daddy would raise that ax up over his head, swing hard, and with a crash it would come down. Most of the time, his blows would chop the round wood into three or four hunks. Sometimes, the ax went thud and stuck. Daddy would step on the wood, wiggle the ax, and go again. Sometimes, the ax would take three of four cuts to split the wood.
My sisters, brother, and I were watching, fascinated at our Daddy’s strength, from what Mom considered a “safe distance” – I’m pretty sure we were inside watching through the window, but can’t be sure. What I do remember, is what he said to us later. It might have been a day or so later, but I remember the wood-splitting was fresh in my mind and we were sitting around the fireplace when he started talking.
“Did you see how it’s easy to cut one type of wood but harder to cut another?” Daddy asked.
We all nodded, my brother pointed out some “really tough woods” (oak).
“But I was using the same ax and I’m the same person, so it was about the same effort for each one,” Daddy said, “it’s the same with parenting. God gave us each of you and you are all different in your own special ways.” (The way he smiled at us when he said that made us look at each other and giggle.)
“We are the same parents, trying to use the same methods, but since each of you are different types of wood…” Here I’m sure someone yipped, “I’m this one!” (oak, of course) Daddy smiled but continued, “so we have to find different methods of teaching each of you so that in the end, we can tell God we’ve done our best.”
As I look at this memory, I realize that Daddy was probably encouraging my mom and himself (as we would have been about 8, 6, 4, 2, and almost here) and they were “early” in their own parenting journey.
This illustration of parenting is also an illustration of everything in life. I’ve remembered this “different wood” lesson and applied it to most things in my life. Teaching – each child is unique so it is understandable that they would each learn differently. Friendship – each friend is different and therefore has different likes and dislikes. Parenting – YES, huge here, true.
Last Sunday, this memory was brought to the forefront because our pastor used chopping wood for his example of how we apply different metrics to each part of our lives. If we judge ourselves by same metrics or measures when we strike a softwood (it shattered into perfect sticks) as when we are striking slightly petrified oak (crud, the ax stuck fast), we would be discouraged. Just as we use different strokes and techniques when chopping different woods, we use different metrics or measures in evaluating ourselves in various areas of life.
Each area of life is unique, as we grow and change throughout our lives. The measures we used ten years ago shouldn’t be the same measures we use today (we measure babies’ length in inches but adult height in feet). We also should use different measures for different areas of our life. For example: We may find challenges in using patience while trusting God is easy. Just because patience is more of a challenge, doesn’t mean we are failing at being patient.
Thank you, God, for giving us easy examples to help us not judge ourselves too harshly. Let us see our life progress through Your eyes.
Thanks for reading!
Type at you next time…
~Nancy Tart
