I am continuing my online photography class. Yesterday’s assignment was to do a walking meditation with camera, pausing to make photos when something presented itself to be photographed.
Between long mindful walks and appreciating the nature in my own front and back yard I am feeling a deep
Reverence for Life
I watched the robin’s nest in the yews in front of our house almost daily to see the eggs hatch and the baby birds begin to grow and develop. Sadly two days ago there was only one of the four robins remaining in the nest. And the next morning the nest was empty. I will never know what predator found the baby birds. To say that this is the way of nature feels like I am trivializing the deaths of the young birds. I am feeling quite sad that they did not have a chance to grow up. And I know that this same story repeats itself countless times with many animal families. We just don’t usually see it unless we are careful observers of nature.
At times nature seems profligate with the number of babies or seeds that living things produce. But only a very few of those seeds or babies grows to adulthood. To have reverence for life means to appreciate the way of nature and realize that we will never fully understand it.
Season of New Life
I have seen five different duck families (4 mallard families, 1 wood duck family) in the pond behind our house so far this spring. But none of them have stayed for more than a day. I’m not sure where the mama ducks take them, probably to the bigger pond that is across the street and down the hill from us. My big hope is that some of the babies survive to become adults.
“I don’t have any idea of who or what God is. But I do believe in some great spiritual power. I feel it particularly when I’m out in nature. It’s just something that’s bigger and stronger than what I am or what anybody is. I feel it. And it’s enough for me.”
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I am enjoying the bird feeders that I put up this spring so much! Each day I see bright goldfinches, chickadees, house finches, cowbirds, cardinals, and more at the feeder. The cheeky goldfinches are my current favorites. Some of them play well with others and quite happily share the feeders. And some of them chase away any other bird that dares to approach the feeders. One fiesty male goldfinch landed on the window frame of my office window and tried to peck at his own reflection in the window. Our next door neighbor told me the other day that she is so enjoying seeing all of the colorful birds flying past her kitchen window to our bird feeders. I hope that by feeding the birds that I am being helpful to their survival and not harmful.
The cooler weather yesterday was so nice. The warmth of the previous couple of days felt more like mid-summer than late May. Today’s rain and coolness is a little cooler than I would like however. Today I’m staying indoors, enjoying watching the birds that are visiting my feeders.The rain does not seem to stop the birds from visiting or the ducks from enjoying swimming in the pond.
“Trees are living beings. And they have their own personalities… There are the young, eager saplings, all striving with each other… If you put your cheek against one of those, you almost sense the sap rising and the energy.”
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On my morning wander in the backyard yesterday I noticed that the cherry tree that I planted more than 8 years ago (it was only about 8 inches tall when I planted it) has finally set on cherries. Last year was the first year that it bloomed. And it had only a few blossoms on it and didn’t set on any cherries. This year there were many more blossoms and I see cherries on it! Now I just need to figure out how to keep the birds from eating all of the cherries when they ripen.
A Dance With Nature
It has been a constant dance of staying one step ahead of the birds and the deer in my gardening efforts. I’m happy to share with the wild critters, but not my whole crop. I’ve surrounded my blueberry bushes with chicken wire, used netting on my black raspberry bushes and planted kale to deter the deer from my container gardens. Last year the deer decimated my sugar snap peas and green beans. But they seem to dislike kale so I’ve planted kale in some old plant pots and placed them around the crops that I care about. We’ll see how well those efforts pan out.
“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”
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I’ve been thinking a lot about what kind of difference I want to make in the world. It is leading me to become more conscious of all the ways that our modern lives are unsustainable. Each day I try to build my awareness and to take actions that are helpful. Jane Goodall is of my heroines. I love the story of how she came to study the chimps at Gombe and how her passion for animals led her to become the renowned teacher she has become. Yesterday I heard a short interview with her and I was impressed all over again with her persistence, grace, kindness, and passion.
I believe that developing reverence for life absolutely necessary if we are to slow down and hopefully reverse climate change.
“I do have hope. Nature is enormously resilient, humans are vastly intelligent, the energy and enthusiasm that can be kindled among young people seems without limit, and the human spirit is indomitable. But if we want life, we will have to stop depending on someone else to save the world. It is up to us-you and me, all of us. Myself, I have placed my faith in the children.”
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Every time I go outside I’m filled with gratitude, appreciation, and reverence for all of the life that surrounds me.
What brings you a sense of reverence? And what do you hope for?
May you walk in beauty.
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