Loving the Natural

A deep connection to the natural world has always been a HUGE part of who I am.  As a small town girl who just happened to be born into a big city life, I had to make exploring the trees and rocks around my Detroit home my mission.  Pretty much every time I went for a walk around my neighborhood I'd pick up a broken tree limb and strip it down to its bare beauty.  I picked up leaves, pebbles, pine cones admiring their color, shape, symmetry etc.  That love for natural things has never left me. My favorite day trip is a hike in the woods followed closely by a day near a large body of water. For years when friends traveled abroad they would ask me what I wanted for a souvenir.  My only request was that they bring me back a rock or sand. (the looks I got!). I frequently traipse in now from my daily neighborhood walks with rocks, palm tree bark and interesting looking tree limbs. My neighbors ask, "what are you going to do with that stuff?"  I tell them that the artist in me doesn't know yet but she will figure it out.😉😉   I have a collection of sand from pretty much every beach I've visited along with any shells and lovely rocks I find.  In fact, I travel with snack sized ziplock bags for the express purpose of collecting sand and rocks.   I have dozens and dozens of pictures of the sky at various times of the day and each one evokes a mood in me.  Time spent beside a babbling brook can literally cause me to cry and ocean waves soothe me like little else can.  The wind in a pine tree grove is like a balm and the quiet amongst giant redwood trees is profoundly soul stirringly intense.  That God made us to bear witness to His wonders inspires me to worship Him through every medium I can express myself in.  I am SO grateful to have this awareness dear reader.  I have tried to infect my husband and every one of my nieces and nephews with it as well. (I think its working because, last fall,  my niece sent me an envelope filled with fall foliage from Michigan!) I believe it is a large part of the stewarding responsibilities we were given right after our creation and I truly pray each one of us takes seriously this responsibility to allow the natural world to profoundly affect us.
Me and the mighty Oaks of Tarpon Springs

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