"Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts." ~ Rachel Carson
As I first started to walk through the forest I was trying to "shut off" my mind and allow the beauty of nature to take over my senses. I was trying to walk and look at the forest through new eyes and for a deeper meaning. I was seeing all the normal things that people see walking through the woods, like the sun peeking through the branches, the leaves being a vibrant shade of green, or the sound of the wildlife. However once I really started to look and listen to nature, I found that I didn't just see a stream or a stand of trees I saw something completely new.
Things may seem dark or dim at times in your life but there is always a glimmer of hope shining through the darkness. We never need to be worried that the sun will never shine upon us, because the light will always find its way through.
When things in life seem to be impassible look around because there is always a way. It may come in the form of a friends or family (or it could be something as simple as a staircase or bridge), however it decides to show up in your life make sure to use it because it is there offering hope to get through the tough times.
Life can be busy and stressful at times, and it may seem life we can never slow down because we will fall behind. Life can feel like it is going a thousand miles an hour and we don't know where time is going because year after year is seems like time is going faster and faster. Sometimes we just want life to slow down a little so we can take a minute and just breathe. When life offers those time of relief the stillness can be overwhelming and energizing to the soul.
Sometimes we just want life to be clear and straight forward with all our options laid out in front of us and all our decisions in life to be crystal clear. We don't want the make life decisions without knowing the end result. Unfortunately no decision is crystal clear, it's more along the lines of "clear as mud" and that can be hard sometimes. We wish that we could see exactly what our decisions would look like in the end.
There may be obstacles in life and they may pose a problem, but there is nothing that say we have to sit down and give up, no! There is always a way to get around the obstacles life puts in front of us.
Life will leave its mark on us in some way or another during our time on earth, however the way we respond to these marks will define if they are going to build us up or break us down.
Sometimes life can feel overwhelming and hard and there may be times we need a friend to lean on, and they can help take some of the weight of life off our shoulders.
Life isn't always straight forward with signs telling us exactly where we are headed in the future, sometimes we just have to trust that we are going the right way.
We just have to go the distance, even if it's an uphill climb and get to the top. You never know there may be a place to rest and figure things out while you're there.
While we are there we might think about how we are leaving our mark on this beautiful earth we live on. Are we going to be in the picture? Or are we going to leave ourselves out and let others handle the problems?
We must realize that we all leave our footprints upon this earth and where we choose to leave them is entirely up to us.
Remember: Take a chance, round the bend, for it may be rewarding
