I think we all have them — scars.

Some are visible results of injury; others are invisible but not imaginary.

Whether inflicted from harsh words, rejection or loss, emotional hurt can be as difficult to bear as physical pain.

I even read about a tree that had a scar.

Author Po Bronson tells a true story about an elm tree that grew to be magnificent.

Its trunk measures 12 feet in circumference, the lush, green crown spans 60 feet, but around the tree is a vivid scar.

The family that owned the farm the tree was on kept a bull chained to the elm. As the bull paced round the tree, the heavy iron chain dug a trench in the bark.

It deepened over the years and threatened, but never succeeded to kill the tree.

When the family moved, they cut the chain, leaving the loop embedded in the trunk and one link hanging down.

As the elm continued to grow, bark slowly covered parts of the rusty chain, and the deep gash around the trunk became an ugly scar.

Dutch Elm Disease later struck, killing most trees in the area, yet the elm with the scar continued to flourish.

Plant pathologists came out to study the tree and reasoned the tree had absorbed so much iron from the chain it had become immune to the fungus.

The chain that could have killed the tree had made it stronger and more resilient.

Now back to our scars, the areas of our lives where damage once occurred. I don’t know about you, but I’m starting to see them less as markers of hurt and more as sites of healing.

Every experience is an opportunity for growth, and I am the only one who determines if I, like that elm tree, continue to mature and become stronger and more resilient through the process.

Ronny Michel may be reached at rmichel@rtconline.com.