The introduction to nature–mountains, lakes, hiking, creek stomping, etc.–started early for this city girl.  

Biennially, we traveled cross country to see Grandma during Dad’s summer break.  After a few days with her, we went camping in the mountains giving Grandma a little break (at 84 years old, she was not used to the volume that 9 invaders created!). I clearly remember the babbling brook on the side of the road as we drove on Interstate 70 from Denver to the mountains.  Dad pulled over so 7 children could pile out of the stationwagon and play in the cold mountain runoff, climb the rocks, and stand under the waterfall.  Looking up stream I remember seeing the creek smile as it sparkled and danced along its bank.  

On alternate years we vacationed in Michigan at a summer cottage just off Lake Michigan.  The sand dunes and waves filled hours of time for a gaggle of children who needed to expend energy. We often went to watch the sunset after dinner and saw the beauty and uniqueness of each one.

When I turned 18 I took a bus to Yellowstone to work for a summer as a maid in the park’s hotel.  Each morning I looked out my dorm room and saw elk drinking from Lake Yellowstone.  I had to keep a lookout for other wildlife when I walked to the hotel. I explored new parts of Yellowstone’s backcountry with friends who had the same days off. Those hikes taught me survival skills, to respect the power of nature, and confirmed my own vulnerability.

Although she offers solitude, refuge, and renewal, Mother Earth’s power must be respected, which we humans do not do, we’d rather possess her.   She lovingly offers her healing properties through the plants and natural remedies buried in the rich fertile ground of her being, yet we do not honor her, therefore, natural consequences produce destruction through the power of her fires and storms.  We have tipped the balance–choking her and betraying the trust God placed in humanity meant to tend to Mother Earth.

Still, her life-giving energy offers me space for creativity when my soul needs refreshment. As the Source of Energy that contains all other energy–we are made of stardust afterall–Mother Earth gives me rest in her goodness.  Where would I be without a beautiful sunset, a hike in the forest, or the fresh air at the seaside?  Intuitively, I knew this early: as a very small child the feeling of being connected to something infinitely larger than me didn’t make me feel small and unimportant, it made me feel loved–it’s all for me to receive in gratitude.  Then I wanted to become like and be transformed by the Infinite Love I experienced in nature. St. John of the Cross, mystic and teacher, taught this about God, “The beloved has passed this way in haste; we see tracings of the beloved in the contours in the mountains, the smell of the rose, the dancing water–we see the beloved in the incarnate love evidenced in nature.  That love is sacred, and concrete in the mountain, in the stream, and in the flowers.”  Growing into that love and honoring the One from whom it comes, I let go of my desire to ‘own’ it and instead, permit God to be God as the mountain, as the rose, as the brook, etc. 

It’s ONLY then that I realize like Jacob, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it” because I am willing to receive with humility these good gifts.