The moments when I am most alive, I am close to her.

Bare feet sinking into her soil or sand, taking in her breath, relishing in her warmth upon my shoulders, gawking at the myriad creatures that she cultivates and the immense intelligence she bestows upon rooted lifeforms

In this moment, I do not allow worry to sour my spirit or beliefs because of the consolation that she has a way, a solution, a response bound by unequivocal laws that far surpass any knowledge or doubt that I may carry

It is my trust in her that allows for acknowledgment of greater possibilities and deeper peace than what any manmade construct could provide

Her gift of ecology, the perpetuation of life after death, the balance held by all critters and landscapes and seeds, the completeness of this marvelous rock that we all roam, is challenged, constantly and forcibly, by we who believe we can outsmart the system

She has slapped us on the wrists for such ignorance and the destruction that it yields, but the time will come when we are spit out, like the warbler rejecting the bitter aphid

And when we are gone, the world will keep dancing to her tune, perhaps more vibrantly and intimately without our missteps

In this moment, I am grateful for the cosmic phenomenon that secured my chance to witness her truths and contradictions, and hope that someday I will be eager and openminded enough to understand my place among them.