Lighting the Way

I noticed a young man heading towards me on the forest path yesterday. Wearing jeans, a sweatshirt, and a baseball cap, he looked like an average teenager. Then I spotted a dog perched in his backpack, peering over the young man’s shoulder. I smiled to myself at the incongruous sight. The young man noticed my amusement and stopped to talk.

He explained that his dog is old now, but she still loves to walk in the woods. So, he lets her walk as far as she can, and then he carries her the rest of the way.

I was so touched by his kindness, and the gentle way he spoke of his dog who has been his friend since childhood. Such pure love and devotion...

As I continued along the path, I had a wondering. How many kind and selfless acts happen in a day across our world?

I suspect that kind and loving acts far outweigh the unkind ones. I’ve heard it said that amid the darkness, there is much goodness and light on our planet. We simply need to focus on the light and it will expand.

I’m very grateful to that kind young man, helping to light the way...

(New photos on website Gallery:  wandernature.com/new-photos)

Morning

After an endless succession of rainy days, I awoke one morning to a glimmer of sun. I grabbed my camera and headed to a favorite spot.

I love the morning…so much promise as the day begins to unfold. As I gazed at the beautiful sky, my heart remembered a time as a child when I believed I could see heaven. I closed my eyes and let flow through me a memory of innocent certainty that all was possible.

In that moment I felt the Earth’s promise that the best is yet to come…and I smiled.

(New photos on website Gallery:  wandernature.com/new-photos)

Light

I've noticed that we haven't heard much good news about our world lately. Disasters, tragedies, fear, hate…we're subjected to a 24/7 loop of bad news. I know it's important to be aware of all that is happening on our planet. But I’m tired of feeling discouraged, and holding my breath waiting for the next catastrophe.

There are so many good things happening on our planet as well, despite what we hear on the news...the young man who donated a kidney to a stranger; the young woman who removed her shoes and gave them to a barefoot homeless woman; the 8-year-old girl who raised money to buy books for children in war-torn countries; one million trees planted in New York City; the incarcerated women who foster orphaned kittens…so many wonderfully positive acts occur every moment.

A very wise being recently suggested that if you focus on the darkness in the world, the darkness will expand. If you focus on the light, the light will expand.

It's time to focus on the light…

(New photos on website Gallery:  wandernature.com/new-photos)