AWARENESS

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth...

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.

Genesis 1:1, 1:31

ARTIST POINT AT YELLOWSTONE FALLS  -  YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK

It was very, very good!!

I remember many years ago when my daughters were young taking them to the Butterfly Exhibit at the Museum of Natural Science in Houston.  We went down corridors and through several doors until we found ourselves in the midst of a tropical paradise... supposedly filled with butterflies, but where were they?  The harder we looked, the less we saw... but when we relaxed and became one with our environment, the forest seemed to open up and we saw thousands, everywhere!  

I kind of feel like that's how I've been the past few months.  At first I was glued to the TV, reading every article and obsessed with the rapidly spreading Coronavirus. Tunnel vision.  Then I relaxed a bit, and decided to focus on the here and now, and by staying at home and social distancing I feel like I have been renewed to the world around me, my world... in my backyard, or along the walks in the woods with my pup.   My mind used to be so busy, I don't think I really absorbed where I was and now that I've relaxed and settled into the rhythm of the day, the flowers are blooming bigger and brighter, I feel the breeze blow through my (getting longer by the day!) hair and the sounds of birds in the morning seems like they're singing a symphony of the Hallelujah Chorus! 

Earlier in March, during Lent I posted of Renewal.  And here we are in the thick of it, in every aspect of our daily life.  As our communities start to open up what an opportunity we have to see and do things differently than "before."  What was working and what wasn't?  Cities around the world are boasting of blue skies instead of smog... tiny fish, scuttling crabs and multicolored plant life can be seen in the canals of Venice, even the people I pass along the way seem friendlier, if even from a distance.... our world is going through a renewal process as well. 

I can already see a shift... in an awareness of what's around us and with that I want to go forward with this as my mantra...

Be kind and respectful to myself,

Be kind and respectful to others,

Be kind and respectful to our planet.

Peg P, from Hendersonville, TN is inspired by music, in particular the old hymns we loved to sing as children... I bet you know this one!

"For the Beauty of the earth,

For the beauty of the skies,

For the love which from our birth

Over an around us lies:

Lord of all, to Thee we raise

This our hymn of grateful praise."