The Great Outdoors

Subject: The Great Outdoors Sat Sep 19, 2009 10:41 pm

I went camping for the first time this past Summer. Now that might be a big deal for an 8 year old...but I am a grown woman with grown children! Since it was a first for me, I thought I would share how it went. Since the topic is "Outdoors", I won't talk about the vacation aspect, but rather the "beauty" aspect of it and the experience itself.

1) We went to a place called Rickett's Glen. It is a campground near the Pocono's in PA, that has a hiking trail with more than 21 waterfalls. It was absolutely breathtaking.
2) The hike itself was not what you would call easy...but it wasn't ridiculously difficult either. It was challenging and demanding...but definitely do-able. I think it was around 7 miles of some good climbs and took about 4 hours.
3) The beauty of it was magnificent. I was thrilled by the incredible scenes that got more spectacular at each turn.

I am so blessed to have been able to do this hike and see this beautiful piece of God's creation. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes camping and hiking.

Subject: My backyard Sun Sep 20, 2009 11:16 am

I know this is not earth-shattering, but I just love to work in my garden, get dirt on my hands, watch plants grow, feed the birds ( my chickadees actually talk to me), read a good book on my swing, and enjoy God's gift of nature to me.

Subject: Re: The Great Outdoors Sun Sep 20, 2009 8:30 pm

judithrose wrote:: I know this is not earth-shattering, but I just love to work in my garden, get dirt on my hands, watch plants grow, feed the birds ( my chickadees actually talk to me), read a good book on my swing, and enjoy God's gift of nature to me.

Judy...your comment reminded me of this section of the Tao te Ching:

80.1 If a country is governed wisely, its inhabitants will be content. They enjoy the labour of their hands and don't waste time inventing labour-saving machines. Since they dearly love their homes, they aren't interested in travel.
80.2 There may be a few wagons and boats, but these don't go anywhere. There may be an arsenal of weapons, but nobody ever uses them.
80.3 People enjoy their food, take pleasure in being with their families, spend weekends working in their gardens, delight in the doings of the neighbourhood.

Subject: universal feelimgs Sun Sep 20, 2009 10:20 pm

Wow !!!!! I never read that book--maybe there are universal thoughta and feelings that many people have in the world.

Subject: Re: The Great Outdoors Mon Sep 21, 2009 8:38 am

judithrose wrote:: Wow !!!!! I never read that book--maybe there are universal thought and feelings that many people have in the world.

Yes there are universal thoughts and feelings that people have! God put them there and we spend our whole lives searching for something that has already been given to us as a gift. The sad part is that so many people refuse to accept that gift. I have lived a lot of life striving, struggling and grasping for the wrong gift! It has taken me a long time to realize I can't give myself a gift - LOL! I can only "receive" a gift. Once I chose to "really" take and lay claim to it...I have found life to be changed. That doesn't mean life is necessarily "better or worse" - but it does mean that my response to it...is changed for the better.

Tai Chi is a great tool to show us these spiritual truths being played out in the physical realm. You've now prompted me to share some thoughts elsewhere in the forum. I am going to post something up in the Random Musings section.

Hope you get a chance to read the "Tao" as we lovingly call it. By the way - Tao translates into the English concept best explained as "The Way".

Subject: Re: The Great Outdoors Mon Sep 28, 2009 7:40 am

Speaking of camping and the outdoors, PBS is running a Ken Burns series on our National Parks. It started yesterday (Sunday) and runs each week. Talk about hiking and seeing the beautiful sites! Look at John Muir who walked from Wisconsin to Florida, then hiked all over until settling in Yosemite. The history of our NPs is interesting and the people who made it possible should be recognized for helping preserve these lands. I've been fortunate enough to visit most of them abd can't wait to go back!

Subject: Re: The Great Outdoors Mon Sep 28, 2009 9:51 am

Lee, thanks for letting us know about this series. I have another little tid bit of info. that kind of "piggy backs" with this. Apparently the US Mint is going to start a new "Quarter" series , like the "State" series we recently completed. It is going to honor National Parks and Historical Treasures in the US and it's Territories. It will start in 2010. I loved the "State" series and really look forward to this one!

If you want to see more about it CLICK HERE

Any other "coin people" out there?

sifulee wrote:: Speaking of camping and the outdoors, PBS is running a Ken Burns series on our National Parks. It started yesterday (Sunday) and runs each week. Talk about hiking and seeing the beautiful sites! Look at John Muir who walked from Wisconsin to Florida, then hiked all over until settling in Yosemite. The history of our NPs is interesting and the people who made it possible should be recognized for helping preserve these lands. I've been fortunate enough to visit most of them abd can't wait to go back!