A Beautiful Mess

The end of November is not everyone's idea of the perfect time to go hiking, I guess.  It can be a bit chilly.  The trails might not be in their best condition.  You have to look a bit more to your gear to make sure you keep yourself warm.  And, it seems to me that the vast majority of people have a pretty limited idea of what constitutes "good weather."

"Everyone begins as a child by liking Weather.  You learn the art of disliking it as you grow up.  Haven't you ever noticed it on a snowy day?  The grown-ups are all going about with long faces, but look at the children - and the dogs?  They know what snow's made for." from That Hideous Strength (Ch 5) by C.S. Lewis

I will admit that I have grumbled about the weather a fair bit in my role as a farmer.  The truth of the matter is this - some weather is more amenable to various farm tasks than other weather.  On the other hand, I will also readily admit that my exposure to all sorts of weather has only increased my awe and wonder at the diversity and the beauty of our world and the weather we can experience.

Certainly, there is nothing wrong with having a preference for certain kinds of weather.  But, we have to acknowledge the rest - if only because another person might not agree with us as to what happens to be perfect.  And, the variety is often where the true joy comes from.

During a recent walk in the woods we noticed that the trees have dropped their leaves and the forest floor was covered.  There is a musky-sweet smell that becomes stronger as we disturb piles of leaves on the path.  They make a familiar 'swooshing' sound as we take each step.  Then, it becomes a game to try and walk without disturbing leaves and to walk as quietly as you are able - finding stones and bare soil to tread. 

"The forest tree is a weed.  But I tell you I have seen a civilised tree ... It was made of metal... Consider the advantages!  You get tired of him in one place: two workmen carry him someplace else;  wherever you please.  It never dies.  No leaves to fall, no twigs, no birds building nests, no muck and mess." Ch 8 from That Hideous Strength

The forest is not an ordered, clean world that this character in Lewis' book desired.  He wanted something that could be clearly and completely controlled to his liking.  That is not that natural world that I love and it should not be a replacement. 

There are times when it feels to me that humanity has backed nature into a corner.  It seems as if we are seeking to control that which should not be controlled. And, in the process of the destruction of the natural world, we remove the wonder, and the awe, and the joy that comes with feeling that you are a part of the grand messiness that is a forest, or a prairie, or a marsh.

"He has a mind of metal and wheels; and he does not care for growing things, except as far as they serve him for the moment...Down on the borders they are felling trees - good trees.  Some of the trees they just cut down and leave to rot...but most are hewn up and carried off to the feed the fires of Orthanc." - Treebeard in the Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

As we took this walk in the woods on a late November day, we encountered a few other souls who also sought an encounter with trees, leaves, eagles and rocks at Backbone State Park.  There wasn't much talking, but when there was - it was considerate, kind, and full of joy for the world around us.  Like us, I suspect many of them left feeling more content and eager for more interactions with nature.

In my opinion, people need more encounters of this sort.  Perhaps it is not for everyone.  Perhaps there are a few where a metal tree that you can move where you like is the best solution.  But, I believe that many would benefit with more exposure to the weather, to fallen leaves, and to the breath of wind on their faces.