Synopsis "From Purple Plums to Autumn Leaves (in English)"
Life is that great journey of discovery, an adventure into the unknown. The very mystery of our lives is that we are constantly searching and longing for something new, something to satisfy our hunger for peace and happiness. In this story the author discovers later in his life that as he traveled along the road of life from childhood to adolescence and adulthood it is our faith that plays such an important part in bringing peace and happiness into our daily living; the kind of peace that comes from an ever-flowing faith and humility that persists even in the midst of our chaotic, noisy, and disrupted world -- a peace that is founded on an interior calm and not external circumstances. As a metaphor, From Purple Plums to Autumn Leaves, represent the memorable moments of the quietly changing seasons in his journey through life as reflected in the changing of the purple plums he grew to love. The plums represent the values he came to love and respect as a child, the plum tree the anchor to those changing circumstances of his life, from blossom to bud to mature plums: from childhood years through adolescence and maturity. As in life, it was not an instantaneous changing. The purple plums and the changing autumn leaves represent the two halves of his life; the first half, his purple-plum years, years filled with vitality and expectations; the second half, the years of acknowledgement, acceptance, and maturity. He now reflects and remembers the changing seasons in his life of yesterday as he walks among the splendor of the autumn leaves of life - today! His home was in a small, rural village known as Cow Head Creek, located among the exotic tropical landscapes of Belize. Abundant with birds and rich with wildlife, it was a place where courage and hard work were considered the keys to tranquility and happiness, where many people now rely on solar power and enjoy a back-to-basic lifestyle. But it is now, as Garbutt admires the beauty of the vibrant autumn leaves that fill his present life, he is able to reflect on the lessons he has learned throughout his journey. Among them is humility-the root of all virtues. And through humility he finds faith, hope, and charity-the true ingredients that allow one to find peace and happiness in life. Join Garbutt as he revisits the seasons of his life, watching as the purple plums make way for the fertile seeds of faith; walk with him among the splendor of the autumn leaves of life, and experiencing with him the many triumphs and challenges that mold his story into a fascinating tale of a life well spent.
