Take Photo: Instagram Challenge Showcase

Monday, November 30, 2015

Instagram Challenge Showcase - Nature

A few years ago, I began work on a book that was never finished. The working title was "A Garden Path to Wisdom". I wrote the introduction and several chapters but never did complete it. Seeing all of the images submitted to the Nature Challenge this week made me think of that book and I went back and re-read my introduction which I'd like to share with you here.

“Mother Nature” – a name we give to the natural world around us. The dictionary defines mother as, “An origin, source; a woman in a position of responsibility or authority; to give birth to; to care for, nourish and protect.” Is it a coincidence that like a loving mother, our natural surroundings when observed can provide valuable guidance for our own life? Could there be buried beneath the apparent order in our universe divine lessons for living?

I sense a deep connection when I am in nature – a connection with something other than myself and my own thoughts. For a moment, it seems that I touch the eternal and the infinite. In life’s most difficult moments, I have sought refuge outdoors – to ponder a sunset or silently watch the rhythmic pounding of the surf. There is a clarity that comes. Not even asking questions, I receive answers. If these answers have come by chance, what could I discover on purpose? What lessons would I learn if I stopped long enough to listen to the silence and screams of Mother Nature?

In my early life, I would have characterized myself as religious – now I choose to call myself spiritual. I believe in a divine intelligence that has created order in our universe (I call this divine intelligence God). I believe this intelligence is also the origin and essence of love. Using those two tenets as my basic philosophy, I believe that by witnessing our natural surroundings we can learn valuable lessons about life and how it should be lived. Revelation should be apparent to the very simple and unlearned as well as the highly educated and economically advantaged, for this is what a loving and intelligent God would do – make the secret of life accessible to all. We can all walk the “Garden Path to Wisdom” just by taking the time to observe the natural order of things.

Not much has changed over the years, I still find solace in nature. Thanks to everyone who participated. It was hard to select only a sampling of photographs. To view them all, please visit the #aom_nature hashtag on Instagram.