Fear in Nature: A Call or a Warning?

Sometimes an incident won’t go away. You keep turning it over and over, revisiting it time and again. For me that’s usually a sign that there’s something there with which I need to deal.

One of these events occurred recently when I encountered a snake sunning a few feet away as I was gazing at the reflections of clouds and trees from a five-foot wide dock on our little pond. I wasn’t sure if it was a poisonous copperhead or a look-alike nonpoisonous northern water snake. While excited that it and I were sharing this time together, I also knew that I would have to pass right by it should I decide to leave. So, when it started ambling in my direction, I got nervous and decided to tap my foot, hoping it might encourage it to leave…which it did. Over the next several days I kept returning to this incident, leading me to wonder why it seemed so important. Finally, I realized that the best way I might be able to work it out was through writing a poem, which I share below.

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Contemplation of Nature

Center for Religion and Environment