Miracle Grow

By Abby Lee Gearhart

I have always loved nature. Being in nature is a way for me to stop and profoundly connect with God’s beautiful creation around me. Taking as little as one minute to look up and absorb the colors, smells, sights, sounds, and feelings can instantly connect you. Looking at the night sky has always been a metaphorical rush for the infinite feelings that surge through my body as I process what my eyes are taking in. Something so vast…so infinite…so much greater than I can comprehend…yet here I am standing in the midst of it. I am not only matter that exists in this space, but I matter. I am right here… right now. Mere coincidence or part of a master plan? A Grand Weaver’s thread in the fabric of history.

It’s my desire to take you on a walk that focuses on the process rather than the final destination. A walk requires taking one step after another; just as there is a journey from a seedling to the maturation of a tree. The journey of a seed is not linear; just as our journey in life is not linear. There is breaking. There is beauty. There is sorrow. There is happiness. There is sadness. This book is an acknowledgement of the beautiful, crazy, and difficult process called life. It’s about seeing the beauty and understanding that it takes work and perseverance to get to the good stuff.

My hope and prayer is that this book makes you not only truly see Creation, but feel it as well. That it makes us all feel connected to one another…and most importantly to our Creator. Science and nature prove over and over again that God—Our Master Designer—does exist. As the wind is not seen, but felt, so is our Father.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Mar 29, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664226111

Abby Lee Gearhart

Abby Gearhart is the Assistant Athletic Director, Compliance Coordinator, Senior Woman Administrator, Campus Wellness Coach, Habitat for Humanity Advisor, Student Athlete Advisory Committee Advisor, and Fellowship of Christian Athletes Advisor at The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. Gearhart began her relationship with Pitt-Johnstown athletics in 2006 as a volleyball student athlete, Gearhart graduated magna cum laude with a dual degree in secondary mathematics education and applied mathematics. She went on to receive her Master’s in Higher Education Administration from the University of Pittsburgh, summa cum laude. In 2013, Gearhart began a six-year career in public education at Conemaugh Township. During that time, she served as a secondary level math teacher. She taught grades 7th through 12th in the subjects from Pre-Algebra to AP Calculus. She was also the high school girls’ volleyball coach. Coaching was one of her greatest joys and she proudly led her team to the school’s first ever section championship. Most importantly, it led to the team’s legacy of post-game prayer and “put-ups” with the other team no matter the outcome of the game. Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) played a dynamic role in her coaching to which she attributes as life changing. FCA taught her the importance of putting Christ first in everything you do, including sports. Gearhart returned to Pitt-Johnstown in November 2018 to follow her passion for working with student athletes and positively impacting her community. She enjoys playing volleyball, lifting weights, hiking, riding her motorcycle, biking, kayaking, photography, writing, painting, and listening to music.

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Copyright © 2021 Abby Lee Gearhart.

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ISBN: 978-1-6642-2610-4 (sc)

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2021904317

WestBow Press rev. date: 03/24/2021

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I have always loved nature. Being in nature is a way for me to stop and profoundly connect with God’s beautiful creation around me. Taking as little as one minute to look up and absorb the colors, smells, sights, sounds, and feelings can instantly connect you. Looking at the night sky has always been a metaphorical rush for the infinite feelings that surge through my body as I process what my eyes are taking in. Something so vast…so infinite…so much greater than I can comprehend…yet here I am standing in the midst of it. I am not only matter that exists in this space, but I matter. I am right here… right now. Mere coincidence or part of a master plan? A Grand Weaver’s thread in the fabric of history.

Without getting too scientific, I love understanding the basics of how things work, grow, go…I am actually a math teacher by trade and an assistant athletic director by career and passion, so I will stay in my lane as much as possible (not to worry, I will not be giving calculus problems at the end of this book)! By God’s design, I am passionate, curious, determined, a lover of people and nature, and a deep thinker.

This book is infused with pictures that I have taken over the years and it even includes a sketch of mine. I have always had a deep fascination with nature, specifically trees. The overwhelming inspiration for my photography has always been trees. Who would have known that those trees were casting a foreshadow into the future of me writing a book on them!

I live in the great state of Pennsylvania, specifically in the Laurel Highlands. I am used to seeing tree spattered rolling hills and beautiful colors of autumn. I began backpacking at the age of 27, and that is when I really started to see nature for its worth. I processed more than the visual surface and face value of each tree. I began thinking about their strength and fortitude. Which led me here: seeing God’s artistry in nature.

It is my desire to take you on a walk that focuses on the process rather than the final destination. A walk requires taking one step after another; just as there is a journey from a seedling to the maturation of a tree. We all started as a seed in our mother’s womb. Ideas and thoughts start as a seed. Faith starts with a seed. The journey of a seed is not linear; just as our journey in life is not linear either. There is breaking. There is beauty. There is sorrow. There is happiness. There is sadness.

Whether you are a believer or not, I believe, in good faith, that you will get a good perspective on life through these words. No matter what you believe, we all have different paths…and in walking those paths, I can assure you that none of them are a straight line. As a math major, I do appreciate and recognize that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, but that is not what life deals us—and I thank God for that. It’s those mountains that we have to climb that give us the best view and it’s those valleys that we trudge through that give us nourishment from the waters and vegetation. Every path we are on has a lesson and a blessing. I encourage you to approach this book with an open heart. It is an acknowledgement of the beautiful, unpredictable, amazing, and difficult process called life. It’s about seeing the beauty and understanding that it takes work and perseverance to get to the good stuff. It’s about accepting and acknowledging circumstances, but not letting them define you. The only thing in life you have control over is your attitude and choices. We have the free will to have control over those two things. And it is those two things, I believe, that will define your life.

It’s quite simple, really. When we shift our attitude, we can see the good in just about every situation or find the good that will come of it. But it takes work. Our default setting is negativity. We have to choose every