Yosemite

Only a two hour drive from our home lies the majestic Yosemite Valley of California, a land of contrasts where granite crags thrust up from the serenity of the meadowed valley floor and gold-hued leaves of oak trees rustle in the breeze that also passes through stands of pines.

John Muir, noted naturalist and pioneer environmentalist explored Yosemite through it's various seasons. A poet in his own right, he wrote: "Nowhere will you see the majestic operations of Nature more clearly revealed beside the frailest, most gentle and peaceful things. Nearly all the park is a profound solitude. Yet it is full of charming company, full of God's thoughts, a place of peace and safety amid the most exalted grandeur and eager enthusiastic action, a new song, a place of beginnings abounding in first lessons of life..."


This week we took a day to visit this place of beginnings. Everywhere were grand vistas that were testaments to the ingenuity of God in creating this earth. I could only feel enveloped by the wondrous richness of this forested cathedral and humbled by the awesome power of cascading waterfalls over towering granite walls. It was good to put aside the mundane cares of daily life, as noble as they might be, and gather strength from this grand place and remember that this world was meant to be enjoyed, cherished and revered as a magnificent creation of God.