I really needed something to cheer me up this morning.  

The world's going to hell in a handbasket and I am not enjoying the ride.  

We are tearing down instead of building up.  

The future is uncertain but feels bleak.

Nothing is going the way it ought to.

And then I turned into the driveway and saw this:

Before The Yard Guys gave it a drastic pruning, my Texas Ranger (Leucophyllum frutescens) was dying from the inside out.  After its haircut, with the innards exposed to sunlight, the main plant seemed to be doing just fine.  

Last week I noticed a few green sprigs at the bottom.  Somehow, without my paying attention, they turned into a lovely little bush of their own.

Maybe that's an answer.  Cut out the rot.  Expose the old and withered, hanging on for dear life, willing to kill the plant in order to survive.  Let nature take its course.  

If only the political world were as easy to manipulate as the natural world.  I'd be happy to fix things with a quick call to The Yard Guys

(Sorry this is late.... I forgot to add the photos last night.)