You probably enjoy listening to Nat King Cole's "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire" in the Christmas season. FYI, while that’s the common name for the song, the official title is “The Chrismas Song: Merry Christmas to You.” The tune was composed by Mel Torme and Robert Wells in 1945, and Nat King Cole sang it the following year. It became a worldwide hit and, now, almost 80 years later, it’s recognized and cherished by pretty much everyone around the world.
Chestnuts are common street food in Korea and other parts of Asia, especially in winter months. However, the majority of Americans have never eaten chestnuts or don't know what they look like. Why did chestnuts, which were so common in the past that they were mentioned in a popular song, become unfamiliar to Americans? This is because of the accidental introduction of “blight” in North America around 1880's.
At the end of the 19th century, mail-order businesses were booming in the United States. And, one merchant imported 12 chestnut trees from Japan to sell in the eastern United States. These 12 Imported chestnut trees, however, had fungi known as Cryphonectria parasitica. To make the long story short, the native chestnut trees lacked immunity to this fungi. Of course, no one knew how imported chestnut trees and their fungi would affect mainland chestnut trees – knowledge related to fungi and bacteria was quite limited at the time. Sadly, the fungi spread about 50 miles per year, drying and killing a total of 4 billion chestnut trees.
Experts estimate that today, there are a few thousand chestnut trees left standing in the Appalachian Mountains. Isn't that shocking?
From this historical fact – that American chestnut trees were almost wiped out by the fungi from 12 trees – we need to realize that some small flaws or issues can cause major problems. I'm referring now to small, tiny flaws in personal character, habits, and attitude. Is it related to honesty? Money? Relationship? Only you know what they are, and only you can choose to address and destroy it.
I hope you’ll choose to eliminate that which can destroy you, your reputation, and your legacy. Don’t let the small fungus take over what you’ve worked so hard and so long to grow and develop. Be brave in naming your flaw, and with God's grace and guidance, make the decision today to eliminate it.