Contemplating Nature always fills me with a sense of awe and wonder. Whether I am admiring a tall, stately tree; laughing at the antics of a chickaree eating through a pine cone; enjoying a gentle summer breeze cooling my face; or discovering a bear feasting on all the salmon they can catch in an Alaskan stream, Nature reveals Its beauty, power, abundance, creativity and resilience. Clearly there is a loving and infinite Intelligence behind this panorama of Life. All creation, whether it is a living creature, the highest mountain, the deepest sea or the farthest star, comes from the same Divine Source.
Beyond beauty and wonder, one of Nature’s most amazing characteristics is that all creation is interconnected. For example, our physical existence as human beings is wholly dependent on a healthy, vibrant planet. Plants produce the air we breathe. With photosynthesis, plants transform the sun’s energy, nutrients from the soil and water into food for us and other living creatures. Water falls as rain or snow and flows into the ground or rivers and streams. On its way to the ocean, water nourishes plants and animals many times and returns again and again to the rivers and the sea. Eventually the water evaporates, forms clouds and returns again as rain or snow. We can disrupt this water cycle by polluting the water with chemicals from our factories, untreated sewage, or leftover pharmaceuticals. Our actions not only affect other humans, but all living species because we live symbiotically with each other.
To sustain our own lives – and all life on this planet – we need to work together as a family to support the health and welfare of each other and our home, planet Earth. Henry David Thoreau conveyed the sacredness of everything in Nature, including ourselves, when he said, “Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads.” Our decisions and actions control our future. Together we can create heaven on earth when we care for each other, our magnificent planet and all of Nature. It is time to join the Earth Force and report for duty!
Love and light,
Rev. Pam
