🌳 The Keeper of the Plum Tree🌳

🌱 Every morning, the Keeper of the Plum Tree reports for duty.

She arrives without fanfare.

No announcements.

No grand entrance.

One moment the fence is empty and the next, there she is.

Perched amoung the branches, surveying her world.

The Keeper is old now.

Her whiskers are a little whiter.

Her steps a little slower.

Her climb up the fence a little more aprehensive.

But every morning there she is, she climbs her fence and settles into her favorite place…beneath the plum tree.

From that familiar perch, the rest of the morning unfolds much as it always has.

The birds know her.

They make a point of announcing her arrival to the entire neighborhood.

One bird sees her and immediately begins shouting.

Then another joins in.

And another.

Soon there is an entire commitee of concerned citizens holding an emergency meeting overhead.

The Keeper remains unmoved.

After all, she has attended theses meetings for years.

The birds discuss.

The Keeper observes.

Everyone fulfills their role.

The plum tree, meanwhile, continues doing what plum trees do.

Season after season.

Year after year.

This year its branches are heavy with fruit.

Deep purple plums hang like little ornaments from every limb.

The Keeper sits among them as though she personally grew each one.

And maybe she believes she did.

No one has challenged her claim.

Not even Teddy.

Teddy is the Keeper’s long time partner.

The father of her kittens.

Her companion in all things, “backyard”.

Together they raised babies beneath these trees.

The kittens grew.

Found families of their own.

Life moved forward….as it always does.

Now, in their retirement years, Teddy and the Keeper spend their mornings much as they please.

Some days Teddy supervises the fence, watching and protecting closely.

And some days the Keeper supervises the tree.

Neither appears particularly interested in working very hard.

I respect that.

This morning, after a lengthly inspection of the plum tree and a complete disregard for bird-related concerns, the Keeper climbed down from her spot on the fence, crossed the patio and found a chair.

She settled herself into a patch of sunshine.

At first she sat quietly.

Then she gave herself a bath.

Then she stretched out completely across the cushion, belly toward the sky, paws hanging over the edge.

A masterclass in “contentment”.

The birds continued their commentary.

The world continued its business.

The Keeper took a nap.

As I watched her sleeping in the sunlight, I couldn’t help but wonder if she knows something the rest of us spend our whole lives trying to learn.

Maybe peace isn’t the absence of noise.

Maybe peace is knowing which noise deserves our attention.

Maybe wisdom is not found in doing more.

Maybe it’s found in recognizing when enough is enough.

The Keeper of the Plum Tree doesn’t worry about tomorrow’s weather.

She doesn’t spend her afternoon replaying yesterday.

She doesn’t rush.

She doesn’t strive.

She simply accepts the gift of the warm sun when it appears.

And when it does..she stretches herself toward it completely.

There is something beautiful about that.

Something I hope I never stop learning.

The birds will continue to yell.

The world will continue to be noisy.

Life will continue to happen.

Find your sunshine anyways.

The Keeper of Plum Tree certainly does.

And if you’re lucky enough to find your own warm patch of sunlight today, maybe you should do the same.

Alhamdulillah for old cats, plum trees, and the quiet lessons they leave behind. ❤️