Finding peace in nature’s cathedral
Are you feeling as worn out as I am at a time when our hearts should be filled with gratitude and thanksgiving?
How long will we find ourselves within the noise of this pandemic and the continuing discord that revolves around this election? Are you feeling as worn out as I am at a time when our hearts should be filled with gratitude and thanksgiving?
When was the last time you were in a holy place? No, not the ones designated by institutions, but a sacred space, given us by The Creator, where we could be thoughtfully grateful?
During this time of isolation, longing to be safely outside the walls of home, I have been spending time each week in the cathedral of the forest. In that space, prayer and contemplation have been as easy to come by as exercise and fresh air.
The sacred space of nature captures the grace of all creation with no imposing limits except that of my own physical stamina…1 mile or 5 today? Hmm… Here there is no need for formal seating, someone ushering me to a specific seat, stained glass windows or other liturgical limits — Spirit envelops us with every new step, however tentative.
The trees reach to the heavens in their majesty, the sounds of the forest offer hymns of joy and thankfulness and the paths walked are simply a part of the spiritual journey as yet undiscovered.
Here, in the beauty of creation, there is no separation between the secular and the sacred and it is impossible to not be grateful for this wonder. Here, we are cloaked in the oneness of everything – the light and the shadows, the sounds and the silence, the gentle, easy steps and the occasional rough climb. All spring from the same spiritual energy and all awaken that Spirit within.
This sacred space calls us to a deeper relationship with the Divine and to each other. A relationship not defined by constructs or conditions but simply by the deep contemplation afforded us by the calling of peace, the inner voice that can, once again, be heard in the stillness away from the headlines.
The only question is if we will listen. If we will take the time to be with that still, small voice in the midst of the drone of everyday chaos. My hope is that we all make time to get outside. Safely. To quiet the noise, to clear away the distractions and to be led to a place of deep gratitude during difficult times. For when we feel that gratitude and thankfulness, we can offer it to a world that, in its suffering, cannot seem to find its way to the beauty and grace that surrounds us. Give thanks — especially when others, in pain, are unable to do so.