I grew up with a little book that told the story of Johnny Appleseed. His legend is a refreshing tale of a man who “earned his nickname because he planted small orchards and individual apple trees during his travels as he walked across 100,000 square miles of Midwestern wilderness and prairie.” (America’s Story, Library of Congress) Jonathan Chapman was his real name and he was born in Massachusetts on September 26, 1775.
I enjoy remembering the legend because it reminds me that the little things in life are the most important. As the legend goes, all Johnny took with him were apple seeds and his cooking pot—the doubled as a hat! He went from town to town planting apple trees so the people moving out west would have apples one day. He was a Christian man that never married, but he brought apple trees out to the Midwest.
Thinking of his example, what are we doing to plant seeds. In the church we there is much talk about planting the seeds of the gospel as we go along—and, yes, that is critical. But I want to think of the word seed in more literal concrete terms. What are you doing now that will benefit others for years to come? Are you maintaining the flower bed in the rented property now so that future tenants can enjoy the house as much as you have? Are you doing little tasks, like picking up trash when you see it, to make a walkway more enjoy able for those who come behind you? What little seeds are we planting for others to enjoy?
Happy Birthday Johnny Appleseed, you continue to teach a great lesson!
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