Whenever we pay attention to or take care of the World of Nature surrounding us, then we are caring for Creation. When we take care of the birds and the bees and the grasses and the trees and the water and the soil and every bit of Nature all around us, that is practical spirituality.
Human beings live on this lovely gem of a planet because of photosynthesis, and rainfall, and chlorophyll, and red blood cells, and ants that till the soil beneath the ground, and birds that distribute seeds, and all the other amazing activities taking place every day all around us! All these activities supporting our lives on this planet happen without any help or instruction from us. There is some kind of spiritual activity that is very orderly and beautiful and filled with wonder sustaining us.
If I go through the day, and I get to the end of that day feeling grumpy, then I go outside and sit in the Sunshine, assuming it's not too hot. I listen to the birds. I listen to the sound of the leaves moving in the trees. I watch the grasses bend and the clouds moving, because of this invisible energy that we call wind.
Several years ago I was living in Texas, outside of Austin. It was a very warm summer. So, one afternoon I took a walk in an area behind the houses where there were trees. There was a lovely breeze and some older evergreens. I remember it was very warm. And, I remember walking underneath the branches of an old evergreen tree. The first thing I noticed was it was cooler and there was a little bit of moisture. It was not as dry under that evergreen tree, as it was out where there were no trees.
So, I sat down under that tree, leaned up against the trunk, and had a lovely meditation. It was cool! There was a breeze! After I sat there for a while, I began to hear the birds singing in the surrounding trees. Then after a while, I could hear little bugs crawling around in the dry leaves and grasses right next to me. I was sitting where it was cool and moist and very, very still. I remember feeling my whole body begin to relax. I could feel my shoulders dropping down. Then I noticed that my heartbeat was slowing and I was breathing more deeply! I noticed that I wasn't as irritated with the heat, even deep in the Heart of Texas!
All Creatures Great and Small, all of us living on this planet, are completely dependent on photosynthesis, on water, on wind, on the trees with leaves with chlorophyll that create fresh oxygen from carbon dioxide. Without those trees, and those leaves, and those little chlorophyll molecules, we would not be here. Somewhere deep down in our consciousness, we know this. We understand that we are part of Creation! And, we understand that Creation is showing us so much about the Creator! Deep in our Hearts, we know this! We may have forgotten. We may be so busy that we don't notice.
But, when we slow down. When we take a walk in the woods, see a beautiful sunset, stand beside a waterfall, or watch the Full Moon rising in the east right on schedule, we often stand in awe. And that is the beginning of understanding. It is the beginning of Spiritual Awakening. Or, maybe we could say it's the beginning of remembering Who We Are. These experiences also help us remember to have gratitude for our lives, for the beauty that surrounds us, for the blessings of delicious fruits and vegetables and the herbs for seasoning and healing and comforting.
We are so blessed and when we remember how blessed we are then, we begin to understand how important it is to Care for Creation!
