Thorns, Scars and Lessons

I've been doing quite a bit of "clean up" out at our place in the country -- mainly along fences which quickly become overgrown with brush and vines if they don't receive regular attention.  As a consequence, I get to deal with itching arms and legs from the chigger bites.  Fortunately, they don't attack me quite as bad as they do some people so it isn't unbearable.  It is a task that is much easier if attended to regularly than if one waits until the fence is overgrown.

This country is interesting because it's as if "nature" doesn't want to be controlled.  It seems that most of the trees and vines have thorns on them.  I was working to clear a path through one particular area yesterday using a chainsaw to cut through a tangle.  A dead honey locust tree (think 2 inch thorns all over it) had fallen.  It was covered in a vine of some kind that had probably been the reason for its demise.  The vine had spiraled around the locust and then grown across to multiple other trees, using them as a trellis to spread through the canopy.

I cut through the tangle and then had to pull the masses of thorny tree tangled in vine out of the way which meant pulling the remaining uncut vines loose from the trees overhead which sometimes caused thorny branches to come crashing down on my head.  It was hot and humid and there were mosquitoes and fireants and the unseen chiggers.  As I backed away, straining to drag a tangled mass to a spot where it could be piled for later disposal, I backed into a Bois d'arc tree.  It felt as though a thousand tiny needles were piercing my back.  What fun!

Oh, did I mention the greenbriar?  It is a vine that seems to grow everywhere in this part of the world.  It is covered with thorns similar to those on a rose bush.  They seem to go through any and everything.  Leather gloves help, but do not prevent them from leaving bloody punctures and scratches all over.  There was also greenbriar in the tangle.

Somehow I managed to get a honey locust thorn stuck in the end of my finger in the process -- through the leather glove.  I pulled it out with my teeth -- or, tried to do so.  The broken-off tip later had to be dug out with a needle.

What struck me about the whole mess is that it is an example of what happens in our lives.  If we allow the unwanted things to creep in and become established, it can be a difficult chore to clean them up and get rid of them.  They need constant, regular attention which requires discipline and effort.  It's a lot easier to gain control before they grow up to entangle us.  Allowing them to overwhelm us can be deadly (like the choked out tree) and removing them can leave scars.