“Cares of the Day” Tree

(Note: This story is adapted from another story you all may have seen previously. I changed it to match my own beliefs based upon my own life experiences.)

Occasionally, a neighbor would be watching through his living room window near the end of the afternoon. One day, he noticed his friend next door walk up to a tall tree in his own front yard and set down his briefcase. He would stood before the tree and appeared to remove something from around his shoulders – it was as if he was taking off an invisible cloak – and gently hang it on a low branch. After that, he would spread his arms slightly out to his sides with his palms upturned, and spend about a minute in that position. Then he would pick up his briefcase and walk into the house.

Over the next several days, the neighbor made a point of watching for this man, and every day, he would do exactly the same thing. One day, his curiosity got the better of him and, as he was friendly with the neighbor, he intercepted him as he finished his late afternoon “routine” and said, “I have noticed for several days that you go through the same series of steps before you walk into your house. Would you mind sharing what you are doing?”

The man smiled and sheepishly admitted that he was just leaving his “cares of the day” outside before he entered his home.

His curiosity still not satiated, the neighbor pressed for more information. Seeing that his neighbor was genuinely interested in his daily afternoon routine, he explained, “As you may know, I have a job that can sometimes be pretty stressful. Sometimes when I leave work, I am frustrated and stressed out. In the past, I have brought that frustration home and taken it out on my family.

One day, I was sharing my frustrations with a wise person who is a very good friend of mine. He said that it is not fair to my family to bring my frustrations home. He said that I need to find a way to unload those frustrations before I walk into my house. So, I came up with this routine.

Everyday, when I get home, I walk over to that tree, and take off my “cares of the day,” as if they were a cloak, and I hang them on the branch. Then I take a moment or two to say my affirmations. This is what I prayerfully say:

“I am a caring, unconditionally loving family man. I love my wife. I love my children. Thank you Holy Spirit for allowing me to leave my cares of the day behind with you. When I walk into my home, I greet my wife with a big smile and kiss. I greet my children, whatever they may be doing, and I do not judge their response, for they are children and not yet necessarily capable of unconditional love. I am happy, clear, and at peace. Thank you, God.”

The neighbor said, “That is amazing! So does that mean that you come out in the morning to put that cloak back on?”

“That’s the funny thing,” he said. “When I leave my cares of the day on the tree, I come out the next morning and find they are no longer there. It is nice, because I start out each day completely fresh. Holy Spirit takes those cares off my hands. As you might imagine, it actually makes it easier when I go into my home in the afternoon knowing that my cares of the day won’t be waiting for me the next morning.”

Namaste