The Photo Meditation of the Month (August, 2010): GIVING UNTIL IT HURTS

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Hollows in a tree at St. Jerome's University campus, Waterloo, Ontario

Photo (June 19, 2010) © Jerome D'Costa

Giving Until It Hurts

Tree hollows form when branches are cut close to the trunk. Due to infection, bug infestation or woodpeckers' pecking holes are formed. These holes or hollows may not be good for the health of a tree, but they surely give shelter to small birds and animals like squirrels, tree rats and others. Many birds build their nests in hollows and hatch their eggs and give life to birdlings.

Trees like this serve others by their amputation and suffering. They shelter others from deadly predators. Sometimes, to creative children, these holes look like noses and mouths -- as if these trees are trying to say something to them.

Mother Teresa once said: "If we do not give until it hurts, there is no meaning to giving." Another time she said: "I have found the paradox that if you love until it hurts, there can be no other hurt, only more love." If we look at great men and women, we see similar examples in their lives. By "dying" through their sacrifices and suffering, they give "life" to others. So, we have a thing or two to learn from hollowed trees!