Near our home we have a mulberry tree. Most people disregard it and walk around the tree, ignoring its berries and avoiding their droppings.
I, on the other hand, will pause for a few minutes to eat the small berries. What a treat and gift. Time after time I have told my wife that I am going to spread out some old sheets, shake the branches, and end up with a bucket full of mulberries. I never have.
Recently while visiting Turkey, my wife and I went on a tour with a tour guide named Nese who was very knowledgeable about the area and was focused on the archaeology, history and politics of the area. She kept us moving. But then one day we came across a mulberry tree. It would not be the last one we ran across.
While the area we were visiting had mulberries like ours, it also had a variety that were two or three times larger than ours. We were in the middle of their ripeness.
Nese stopped what we were doing, interrupted her talk, and went over to the mulberry tree. I and a few others followed her. I found out Nese was someone who was as thrilled with mulberries as me. She would almost romance how good the berries were, how blessed we were, and as we stood there, she would recall days of her youth. For a few minutes, the tour paused as we stood under the shade of the mulberry tree, eating its gift to us.
It was a special moment for all of us there.
We all get busy in life. We get focused on our goal for that moment or that day. We get bombarded by demands. We deal with crises. At the end of the day, we are just thankful it is over—that we survived it. Almost every day, there are “mulberries” that we walk by. Maybe we walk around them because they are messy, or we just don’t take the time.
Sometimes the “mulberry” is just taking time to talk to someone, sitting in the backyard listening to a thunderstorm, or just reflecting quietly by yourself. These are all mulberries that we should stop and enjoy. Just a few minutes out of each day can make our lives so much better.
I am enjoying a “mulberry” right now writing this article about mulberry moments with Nese. I am also enjoying another mulberry. I can hear my wife and son over my shoulder talking with my grandson, Alex, helping him put together a puzzle on a quiet Saturday morning. Just another mulberry moment.
Please take a mulberry moment each day. You will be richer for it.
—Randy Clinkscales is an elder law attorney in Hays, Kansas.
