©Dorothy Littell Greco, Zion National Park
I wish I had a photo of myself on the first Earth Day. I was nine, had long pigtails, and probably wore a homemade, tie-dyed shirt. I tried to motivate my classmates to join me in a celebratory clean-up but instead walked alone along the river near my house, collecting bag, after bag of garbage. Even at young age, I was passionate about caring for the earth.
When I think back to that first Earth Day, my feelings about the environment were neither sentimental nor politically motivated. Nature pulled back the curtain and gave me a glimpse of the spiritual world—of something bigger, grander, far more transcendent than the life I knew—and I was hungry for that more.
Behind our house was a small wooded area that bordered a collapsed quarry. This was my refuge. It was full of wild blackberry bushes, towering pines, and a small creek. My calico cat and I often walked through the woods together. The wind blowing through the pine boughs whispered, There’s more. Lean in. God was wooing me.
I didn’t know what the more was until many years later when I began to explore Christianity. It wasn’t necessarily individuals, the church, or Scripture that provided a path toward him. It was nature. Nature’s raw, untamed beauty broke open my heart. Paraphrasing C.S. Lewis, I experienced beauty as a portal. When I stepped through it, I found myself drawn into God’s wide open arms. Into a universe filled with awe and wonder.
When I finally got around to reading the bible and came across this verse, tears flowed freely:
The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them. (Ps. 19)
It all made sense now. This was, and continues to be, my deepest point of connection to God.
©Dorothy Littell Greco, water drop on kale leaf
Though mankind and the church have failed me, God’s creation never has. It always draws me back to him. It feeds my soul and brings peace to my body. I never want to stop being amazed at the miracle of snowflakes, the scent of a magnolia, or the sweetness of watermelons.
I want to live like every day is Earth Day. Want to join me?
@Dorothy Littell Greco, Olympic National Park
A longer version of this post originally appeared over at The Sage Forum in April, 2020. You can check out more articles at Sage Forum here. You can find samples of my photos over at my website.
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Please consider how small life-style adjustments can reflect your love for creation.
Happy Earth Day.
Beautiful
AMEN!