Back home >

 

Presence Among Pines

A lazy afternoon in a hammock strapped between two lodgepole pines gave me this view—all my son Dakota’s idea. The creaking trees, afternoon birdsong, a plane passing high overhead—I found myself entirely present, devoid of any regret or worry for an hour.

As one wise person said, “Sling a hammock between the words ‘over’ and ‘next,’ and you are living in the moment.”

For me, literally hanging a hammock between two trees and lying back produced an equivalent sensation.

And in that pause, I found myself looking up.

My head cleared in no time.

My worries disappeared.

My heart filled with awe.

I felt God whisper His love in the wind.

Oh, to stay in that moment swaying in that comforting breeze! To care less and hope more! To love better now rather than later! To spend more moments looking up—I think I’ll try.