Communing With Nature

Today’s prompt is pleasure, and given how lovely my past few days have been, I’m going to take this post to count my blessings.

I have so many wonderful things to be glad of. I have a wonderfully supportive family who have been there from day one for me. I have a group of friends who never fail to cheer me up. I have pets I adore beyond all reason, a school I love attending, a city that is bursting with beauty, and a faith that shines brighter than the sun.

Even outside of me, though, there are so many beautiful things in the world. Right now, the flowers are in bloom, splashes of colour against effervescent greens. The heady aroma they emit perfumes the air as well as the familiar scent of warm grass. Fluffy, white clouds scudding across a blue sky, listening to the soft splashing of the river while a gentle, cool breeze ruffles hair. It’s a scene reminiscent of Paradise, and that’s exactly what today looks like where I am.

I’m so lucky to be able to enjoy scenes like this. I’m so lucky to be able to go outside, sit in the grass or on a river rock, and just enjoy the day for what it is. No expectations, no distractions from cellphones… just me and nature. Me and the spirit of the land. It’s such a profound feeling, and yet so very peaceful. There is so much peace to be found outside in nature, even in our own backyards. One doesn’t even need to think of anything in particular (though reflection is always a good idea) in order to enjoy. Just take deep breaths, close your eyes, and feel.

Pleasure comes from all kinds of different sources, and I find it also tends to have different strengths of feeling. For instance, the pleasure you feel from playing with your dog after a long day’s work is very different from the pleasure you feel at scoring the winning goal at a hockey game. And yet, these are both valid expressions of what pleasure really is. At the heart of it, it is an expression of joy, and of our affection and closeness to the object that brings out this emotion in us. It is altogether complex and simple.

My birthday will be upcoming, and some of my family members have expressed an interest in stopping by to visit me, which will be nice. It’s been quite awhile since I have seen any of them so I will very much enjoy having them near me, even if it is only for a little while. We also have a birth in the family coming up in September, and I’m trying to make arrangements to see the mother-to-be for her baby shower. Busy, busy, busy!

While I have so far been able to keep to my commitment to post at least once per day on my blog, I’ve recently been offered an opportunity that may cut into the time I have currently allotted for Canterbury Convert. I am still trying to work out whether it will be possible to post daily here in addition to this other commitment, but if not, I may switch to a posting frequency of every other day. At the very least, I’d still like to post three or four times per week here (if only for my own sanity).

I’d like to close off by wishing my Canadian readers a happy Canada day!