Reflection

While I may not find the time or creativity to write about it, my life never lacks inspiration for prose. Whenever I look at the whole scheme of things, it starts to sink in how everything in my life has panned out and it's almost overwhelming to me at times. I have always been driven to find some higher purpose in life, but I think I always knew deep down inside me that what I've been striving towards is to be more connected with nature.

Everything else in my world is picture perfect. I have the most amazing family and friends. I know very few people that can genuinely say they adore each and every one of their family members -- I'm talking siblings, parents, grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, all of them good to the very last drop. I am so so sooooo thankful to have these people in my life. And as I venture out into the world and build relationships with people I meet along the way, I continue to find that there are truly good people out there, full of life, striving to make the world a better place.

Unfortunately, not everyone in this world has that genuine goal to do good onto others in life. Some people are not that patient. Instead of working hard to get where they would like to be, they would rather divide and conquer to get what they want. Sure, we're all a little selfish. It would be insane not to be. Our gut instinct as a living creature is to survive. But that doesn't mean we can't live in harmony with the world and enrich our lives by caring for our surroundings and the people that surround us.

When I gaze down at the Rogue Valley from the tops of the Table Rocks, stand at the roots of a giant redwood, or linger upon the wide gaping mouth of the Grand Canyon, I find myself completely captivated. Untouched, pristine nature is the most beautiful thing this planet has to offer. Not a fancy pair of shoes, a big building, a new hair style or a sports car. These are all man-made finite things and we are finite ourselves. Even though we represent a very minuscule time period in the history of the earth (only the last few seconds before striking midnight if you compare the earth's history to a clock), we believe that we are the top dog, the ruler of all things great and small. Therefore, we feel like we have a right to control nature, to manipulate the natural system and throw everything off balance.

The truth is we are just as much a part of this planet as the soil we walk upon and it is time to start treating our world with respect. If we want to continue to carry out life as we know it we must retreat back to simpler times when humans only lived off of what was provided for them by the earth. The resources that we are extracting to continue our wasteful existence will eventually run out if something else doesn't bring us to our demise first. But I believe there is still hope.

Our minds, bodies, will power and emotions are strong enough to find solutions that will enable us to carry out our existence sustainably. I believe it's possible to continue living with all of our gadgets and luxuries, but with less of an impact on the planet and we must challenge ourselves to do so. We must put an end to our corrupt way of life, sitting fat and happy while others of our same species are starving to death. This includes those suffering in our own country who were not handed the American dream as easily as the large majority of us. We have to find a way back to a common ground. We can't continue to let the rest of the world suffer at our benefit.

At one time in our history, we got it right. We found ways to live off the land with little impact, essentially in the garden of Eden. But, we weren't satisfied with what we had. Instead, we chose to pick the the forbidden fruit and once we got a taste of its seductive juices, we were hungry for more. We have reached a point where we are no longer looking out for what is best for our survival, but rather what will feed our desire.

Instead of putting all of our creativity into things that are continually removing of us from the natural world we need to find ways to bridge the gap between the fortunate few and the rest of the planet. Always look to Mother Nature for inspiration and she will be sure to hand you something in return. The workings of the world never cease to amaze me and I know it is not humanly possible to outwit the natural system. Mother Nature is strong and fierce, yet loving and endearing, but she must be treated like a lady with the love and respect that she deserves.