On a recent chilly winter morning, I bundled up and headed out for my early morning walk. As I listened to The Writer’s Almanac, Garrison Keillor announced it was Jack London’s birthday. As Keillor, in his well-recognized baritone voice, shared some of London’s hardships during his pre-novel years, I listened...
Summer Ivy
Ah, the fresh green blankets and increased bird and beast activity in the woods: always delightful as spring leaps into summer. With it, of course, comes that dark cousin to those winsome thoughts: poison ivy. It’s thriving well running along the ground or starting to climb trees. It’s a familiar...
Media Off, Nature On
Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense. – Gertrude Stein No stranger to the siren, healing call of a media blackout, I’ve used this technique countless times to regain my senses. While we practice social distancing (shouldn’t we be calling that “physical distancing”...
Dream
In my dream, I was walking the familiar wooded paths nearby on a crisp, bright, winter’s day. Yet, something was different. Being the only one patiently walking these leave-covered trails winding through hardwood trees was nothing new. Not hearing any road noise from nearby highways, however, was new. Soon I...
Pandemic Perambulations
The trek to Trader Joe’s last week felt like going to Disneyland, but instead of Mickey Mouse and Goofy greeting me, gloved workers festooned with decorative face masks happily welcomed me in. Good to get out, drive, take in fresh scenery, and walk through the wonderland of newly stocked shelves...
Early Mornings in (My) Church
I believe in God, only I spell it nature. – Frank Lloyd Wright I’ve often felt far more spiritual and connected to that essence each of us attributes to a higher power, or universal spirituality, while being in nature. I find it nearly impossible not to relax or quiet the...