
Fifty Years In His Shadow
by Edward Thornton, Ph.D.
"What is it like living in the shadow of Wayne Oates?"
It is like living on a property shaded by a magnificent maple rooted just over the fence. The tree stands tall and strong creates verdant abundance in spring cool shadows in summer vibrant colors in fall and a symmetrical, graceful structure in winter.
Wayne is the kind of tree old timers would name in a deed marking a boundary tracking a wilderness. He is a landmark for travelers, reassuring defining identity, naming a place encouraging one to look beyond the now into the not yet.
As neighbor, he is a tree that asks little for itself Though it bears the wounds of many storms, it stands there indestructible. Never intruding and ever blessing it creates under its canopy a space for rest reassurance about the journey ahead.
A fatherless child Wayne was found by a family of faith and grew into one of those trees of whom the psalmist sings:
planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper. Psalm 1:3 (NRSV)
Yes, I have lived in his shadow for fifty years. I praise God for an exceptional gift.
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Last Updated on Monday, 29 September 2008 12:59 |