Admiring God's Creation

I am a lover of nature. I love watching God's beautiful creation & find it awesome, amazing, inspiring & refreshing. The very thought of it brings peace & serenity to my very being & I could use a lot many more adjectives to describe the beauty of nature - the wonderful creation of God.

Every morning I stand by my window & admire the clear sky, the birds flying about, the squirrels climbing up the bark of the trees & the trees swaying in the breeze. The chirping sound of birds & the bright sunshine cheers my spirit. Often I see birds flying to & fro busy working at their nests, carrying small sticks & twigs in their tiny beaks. They seem so happy & carefree. I am sure God intended for us to live happy & carefree lives & enjoy His creation. But somewhere down the line we have busied our self with our work trying to keep pace with the ever increasing demands of the world. I feel a great sense of peace & calm when I look at the sky in the night & marvel at the bright moon & the countless stars twinkling in the sky.

I also enjoy going to the beach. It is so relaxing to watch the water form little ripples & also the huge waves lashing against the shores during high tides. As I walk along the beach I pick up beautiful shells & periwinkles of different shapes & shades. At Velankanni, I was attracted to the beach & walked on the sand picking shells one better than the other. Since the tide was low I was drawn further into the sea when I found my feet sinking into the sand & noticed a signboard that warned people not to venture into the sand at low tide as many people had been sucked into these treacherous sinking sands & lost their lives. So I hurriedly returned towards the beach. I now looked at my beautiful collection of shells & realised that God had the best collection of shells scattered on all the beaches around the world.

The beautiful horizon is a marvellous sight. I have no words to describe its real beauty. As I watch the setting sun, I always make a wish.My mother told me when I was a little girl, any wish made when the sun sets is fulfilled. The little fish in the ponds, the crabs in the crevices of the rocks, the boats & trawlers dropping their nets into the sea to catch fish, the lighthouse some distance away are scenes I cherish. I sincerely wish I could spend some more time with nature.

On my trips normally in India itself, I enjoy nature. It is the only time we can relax from our busy schedules & become one with nature. The beautiful gardens in Bangalore, Mysore, Ooty, Kodaikanal are worth seeing. The variety of flowers, the rose gardens & plants are awesome. The waterfalls, hills & valleys, the greenery is so refreshing. The scenic beauty of Goa, Kerala & all the coastal areas in India is mind-blowing. Taking morning walks, walking along the shores & forest areas & cruising down the lakes is exhilarating. Nature is certainly the source of solace, inspiration & adventure.

I love the natural beauty of Kashmir. It is like heaven on earth. I was fascinated by the stretches of valleys & mountains. I had a beautiful ride in the shikara which went skimming over the green transparent waters of the Dal lake. The snow capped mountains reflected in the water & the fish could be seen like one could stretch out their hands & almost touch them. I also saw the floating gardens where flowers, fruits & vegetables were grown. I took a bus ride to various points & finally arrived at the foot of the snow capped mountains where I was tempted to take a sleigh ride on the slope of the mountain. I was made to walk up as far as I could walk & then came down in the sleigh with a terrifying speed - the cold air & snow blowing against my face. I stepped out & was glad to be on terrafir-ma.

I also enjoyed the scenic beauty of the Himalayas. It is truly enchanting. The snow capped mountains & the Fir trees growing there is a beautiful sight. Nainital is blessed with natural resources. The beauty of the sparkling lakes, mountain ravines & valleys & the sunrise & sunset over the mountains is such a delight. Also the beautiful falls, green hills & snow ranges of Missouri overwhelmed me. I experienced snowfall there.

I have been for several safaris in the forests where I saw lions, tigers,bears,deers & many other animals at close range. It was adventurous.

As I share my experience with you, I feel so good & refreshed & very happy. Advanced technology, a growing competitive world, our desire to reach the height of success,our obsession for wealth & our great desire to amass riches is keeping us so busy that we have little or no time to admire nature. God's creation is so wonderful & I am sure you will agree that we must spend time enjoying it.