Wonder in nature!

Examples of things where I love to wonder about are; the golden threads in the eyes of  frogs, the brilliant light on a icy field filled with snowflakes or millions of termite winged-alates flying up from their homes in a star-lit night after the third day of good rains.

I learned to wonder from one of the best in this. He often came and stayed with me for a week, with his wife and daughter. I noticed that he was always excited when he called me to ask if would mind to take him out again in the bushveld. Each time he left the camp to return to his home, he would promise me that he would be back soon. During the years we went out on safaris together I found out that he had spend many more hours in this environment than me.

He must have known already every little thing I pointed out to him. He must have seen the wildebeest and the zebras thousands of times. None-the-less we stopped every time to look at them. We stopped every time to admire the golden web of a golden-orb spider or to take a look at the bullet-shaped droppings of an old kudu bull that walked by in the morning.  We definitely stopped at the fresh spoor of the elephant heard that we heard at night breaking branches while feeding.

We lost ourselves completely on our walks and drives in the wonders of nature. We forgot about the time, which day it was and the roles we play. We forgot what responsibilities were waiting for us when we got back to camp. Every step on our walks together became a possibility to find something new to wonder about. The walk became uplifting and energizing in a new way. Our senses sharpened and the attitude in us changed. We were back in our state of wonder. The state that we were often in when we were children, crawling around in the long grasses and building treehouses in a pine forest. Carefree and happy.

The next time you take a walk or drive in nature remember to take time and stop to wonder about the things you see in nature. What is it that you have not noticed before? What gifts did nature produce last night? Just for your eyes to admire?  I believe that there is somewhere a field of wonder where we all can stay how long we would like.

I will meet you there.