[Nfbk] Generosity of Spirit

[Joey Couch]

"Generosity of Spirit"

Just as individuals can overcome hardship and surmount challenges, so
can communities and nations. Very often, it is in the soil of
difficulty that the fruit of resilience and progress grows.

Nearly a hundred years ago, the cotton crops of Enterprise, Alabama,
were devastated by a boll weevil infestation. The area’s economy was
shattered, and many farmers faced bankruptcy. But rather than give in
to despair and hopelessness, the citizens of Enterprise were true to
their name and went to work, turning to peanuts and other crops to
replace the cotton.

A few years later, the county was producing and harvesting more
peanuts that any other region in the United States. In gratitude and
recognition, residents erected on Main Street “the world’s only
monument to an agricultural pest”: the Boll Weevil Monument. It is a
symbol of a community’s “willingness and ability to adjust to
adversity,“ a memorial to civic resilience and progress. Inscribed on
the base of the monument are the words “In profound appreciation of
the boll weevil and what it has done as the herald of prosperity this
monument was erected by the citizens of Enterprise, Coffee County,
Alabama.”

What happened in that small, aptly named city is a reminder to each of
us today: when faced with adversity, if we come together as
communities and nations, strengthen our resolve, and refuse to give
up, who knows what might happen? As citizens rally around common
causes that promote the well-being of all, miraculous things can take
place. From rubble can come new growth, from difficulty can come new
opportunity, from setbacks can come stepping-stones to prosperity.
Indeed, what seems difficult, even impossible, can become a new,
positive reality.

If you doubt it, think of the lesson of the boll weevil and the people
of Enterprise, Alabama, from decades ago.





-- 
Joey Couch
phone 606-216-8033.
email ki4vjd at gmail.com
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