I See With My Little Eye
Beauty and Ugliness Coexist
Things are not as they should be. My world is askew, tilted almost irreparably, and I can't seem to fix it. Humanity is passé, and bombs are to be celebrated. I care not to be political when I write, but I do care to be a grateful inhabitant of the earth.
Silly? Perhaps.
You see, I am a pacifist. I am a nature lover. I am a people lover.
I believe that all God's children should have access to shelter, food, and clothing. These beliefs were instilled in me as I grew up surrounded by flower children and the spirit of Woodstock in New England, where peace, nature, and social justice were celebrated.
How can that kind of experience possibly coexist with the news each day? My heart is ever burdened with the weight of this question, constantly asking why, why, and why?
Now that I am navigating this life journey alone, it becomes increasingly inconceivable to me daily. I often retreat to the woods for comfort and renewal, perhaps like my literary idol, Henry David Thoreau.
I can't fathom wasting what little time I have left on earth casting stones, deporting amid violence 60,000 humans (the current cumulative count), or building Alligator Alcatraz (yes, that is the name) in Florida to house many more "illegals" in trailers and tents. Are they all murderers and rapists? Don't get me started on the Supreme Court's temporary allowance to send human beings to places like the Sudan.
Where does it end? Why is there such hatred and distrust?
Tonight's news is about perceived success in material creations like bombs and nuclear weapons. Still, my heart, as always, is caught up in the inhumane treatment of human beings.
When I walk the paths and observe the creatures of the earth, I find some solace, but my heart is bruised and always looking for a way out, a way to make a difference.
Assuming that some of you relate to the same sentiment, I will share photos from my recent walks to offer you the gift of peace.
Advisory: I will not view alligators in the wilds of the midwestern US. Soon, some humans will inhabit the same environs as these creatures, just as hurricane season arrives, coinciding with the disturbance of life for both prisoners and wildlife. There will be no funds available to help either of them, as the dollars have been used to build “prison-like structures.”
If I have given you even a single moment of reprieve from the ugliness, I count myself fortunate. Perhaps that is the escape I seek, if only for tonight.
It seems to me that the natural world is the greatest source of excitement; the greatest source of visual beauty; the greatest source of intellectual interest. It is the greatest source of so much in life that makes life worth living.
~ Sir David Attenborough
Thanks for spending time with me.
Thank you, thank you for your offerings here, your gifts of peace. I am a pacifist too. 🙏🏽❤️
I love the photos...So beautiful.