A WOMAN'S WISE WAY
According to the classic adage, we are to make lemonade when Life hands us the called-for ingredients...whether or not we've called for them. This idea of turning a sour situation sweet is often felt on a range of levels. Perhaps a difficult social problem to solve, money matters, even in times of personal crises we turn to this idiom to remember that out of a negative environment, positive outcomes are possible.
On a personal sidenote, lemons seem to be very much minding their own business and in fact can be quite helpful as a flavor-booster to water or an ingredient for natural cleaning remedies. Still, the saying remains: when Life hands you lemons...But, what happens when Life hands, or rather uproots an enormous cedar tree across the driveway?
The solution was quick and clear to Kiki Crawford one rainy morning in Alabama - see picture below. When a heavy rainstorm tore through town it left a few items of debris to handle. Without a moment's guess, Kiki was at the ready with a trusted friend of the family to begin the hefty removal of a fallen gentle giant. Now enter Moral-of-the-Story #2: Everything happens for a reason.
The wisely matured tree was a resource that Mrs. Crawford could think only to share with her community. Working together to cut the trunk down for firewood and bunch together the seasonally aromatic branches, Kiki and her friends took these materials to a local market to be sold for donations to a neighborhood Veteran's shelter. While many might have floundered at what to do, Kiki stayed calm and found a solution that benefited her community during the greatest time of year to give - the Christmas season. This story would only be more incredible if it had been a lemon tree! Nevertheless, the community thanked Kiki for her smart problem-solving and joined in her smiles as what began as a onerous morning ended in a wonderful evening.