Discovering Interconnectivity

On a bright morning

You go for a walk.

Beams of light brush your face,

The wind dances between the trees,

The grass reaches up beneath your feet

Saying to you, “Good morning.”

You see green leaves, blue skies

And start to get lost in the nature around you.

Try to imagine a world where

Birds have filled all of the branches with nests,

Deer can graze wherever they wish,

Eating buffets of berries and brush,

Rabbits run freely through the fields

With plenty of land to choose to dig their holes.

Imagine a world before we built

Refineries and skyscrapers,

Housing projects and highways.

It may be challenging, you’ll have to imagine a world

Quite different from our own.

A world where

You are a part of the world as

Much as it is part of you.

You have no need to ride, drive, or fly anywhere.

Your biggest destination is the nearest river.

Your food is waiting to be found

Or just growing in the ground,

Maybe even in the trees.

In the morning,

You wake up to the soft kiss of the sun.

In the evening,

You are cleaned by the hands of the lake.

At night,

You rest with the white glow of the moon.

You would be living in a world

With a lot more trees,

More than you could ever fathom.

A world where it isn’t a hassle

To find some peace and quiet.

You wouldn’t have to travel

To get away from

Screaming sirens,

Roaring railroads,

Piercing planes or

Honking horns.

In this world,

You are immersed each day

By a chorus of

Cheering chirps,

Grazing grass,

Running rivers and

Buzzing bugs,

All of them coming together,

Like a breath-taking orchestra.

As you listen to their song

You feel the connection

Between them all.

Breathing in,

Breathing out.

You discover the perpetual peace

Present in life.

You are alive,

And hold within you

The energy which has traveled

For millions of years

Before you were born

To where you are now,

And with every step you take,

You carve out the path

For that energy’s next journey

When it’s time with you

Comes to an end.

You live in every waking moment,

Filling your lungs with air,

Flooding your brain with oxygen.

Walking every single day

With your toes touching

The dirt and greeting the worms.

You live day by day

Without really thinking about

What life was like

Thousands of years ago

Or questioning

What it is

That your future holds.

Every day

You are present.

You are mindful

That you exist to live.

You exist to swim in a lake.

You exist to walk up a hill.

You exist to stare into the eyes of a deer

While the whole world around you just sits still.

You exist to roll in the grass

And feel every blade

Against your skin.

You exist to soak up the sun

And stare at the moon.

Haven't you ever wanted

To exist just to live?

You can escape your reality, but

You can’t escape nature.

You are the dirt, the water, the air and the mountains.

You are the birds, the deer and the rabbits.

You are the person to your left and the person to your right.

You are the comet flying through the night sky.

You are everything there is, there was, and will be.

So next time you’re stuck inside

And the world seems

Like too much to handle–

Go for a walk,

And try to think about life

In a way you haven’t before.

Look around.

Feel the light,

Feel the wind,

Say hello to the grass.

Take some deep breaths.

Be thankful, be grateful.

Learn to love the land,

Learn to love the animals,

Learn to love the dirt,

Learn to love the universe and

Learn to love yourself.