Being There: Nature’s Enduring Conversation By Guest Blogger Karla Boyd

 

 

It’s set to be a very hot July 4th Holiday here in my desert. I’m longing to connect with nature for more than the scant 60 minutes I get each morning before the scorching sun rises, and so it seems fitting to share my friend and colleague Karla Boyd’s piece on “Nature’s  Enduring Conversation.” Enjoy. I’ll be back to writing after I’ve had a long hike. – Andrea

 

I wake up to a hot shower, liquid hot packs on tired shoulders. Later I start to climb a mountain trail close to home. Near the curve of my lookout I gaze over the vast panorama and breathe in deeply. The view looks good from here.

Recently, Heather Armstrong, writer and lover of Super Mutts, Chuck and Coco, took her daughters, Marlo and Leeta, on an outdoor adventure. Hand gliding, Crocodile Bungee or Volcano Boarding you might ask? No. Who needs to lean over cliffs when we’re cut off from our roots?

Heather packed her kids in the car and drove 3.5 hours to Arches National Park in Utah in the snow.  The oldest daughter after seeing this magnificent red-orange, brick-hued arch quipped, “Awesome, being out here is, like, nothing I’ve seen ever.” And given the internet, media’s playground, that says it all. Nature, it’s like nothing we have ever seen.

In our American scarcity conversation, our hunt for the next adrenaline rush, we ignore the obvious. To connect with Mother Earth. We all need to recharge, powered by slow walks and energized runs out onto grassy knolls. Nature is a magnificent host anchoring us, granting inspiration to fuel our day and to stay in relationship.

I love nature’s creatures. Okay, I love most of them. But in nature, there is an enduring conversation that is constantly teaching us. As William Shakespeare said,  “One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.” That certainly was true for me yesterday.

I was at a beautiful gathering in a community on acres of rolling hills, wisteria and gardens that overlook fountains and a little Buddha planted amidst bright yellow and indigo flowers. I was there in birthday celebration of a life reaching out from her 92 years, her contribution inspiring to all who know her. As I walked toward the assembly hall, I was a bit surprised to see the gathering crowd staring off at the grass as if they had not seen green earth before. Granted many came from nearby brown hills with temperatures sweltering in the high 90’s, but this is a wet ocean town. The grass is always green.

As I approached so did a friend, one of the community residents. Momentarily I saw the grass come alive. Bryce glided through the crowd and swooped the snake up in one smooth movement, holding him then in the air. People gasped. A photo was taken. Bryce ceremoniously draped the snake around his neck, smiling. Astonished vocalizing ensued. Some laughed. The snake squirmed. Bryce departed, snake in tow.

Later, I asked Bryce about his experience. To my admiration he responded, “Poor guy, he got scared when people laughed.” My snake phobia melted watching him that day. Bryce confided he felt himself a snake in a former life and he was recognizing his great-grand nephew. We both smiled. We are all connected. What better way to be reminded of our connection than in celebration of a 92 year-old life, while engaging nature’s paradise?

(Karla Boyd, the author of this piece can be found at http://www.namasteglobalvision.com/)