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FEELING NATURE – Going into the wilderness we can experience many feelings. Awe at the natural beauty, joy from young creatures emerging into the world under parental supervision. Recently, a morning cruise on Lake Jocassee was reminiscent of the lake in Maine where I grew up. The sights and smells prompted feelings of sadness as family disintegrated amid nature’s splendor. We should connect these feelings because for good or ill they are what makes us who we are. Going into nature to feel is an improvement over just looking at mountains and waterfalls then jumping into your car and speeding to the next natural wonder. Stop and experience how those mountains and waterfalls make you feel. Think of how the mountains were formed. Think of how the mountains shaped history and society. Consider all the many facets that make and define a place (good and bad things). Think, too of your place in nature. Can you help protect a place financially or physically? Can you write about, paint or photograph (without making a place so alluring that the place becomes overrun and destroyed)? So come into the wilderness. Sit and feel the breeze on your cheek, the sound of the breeze in the trees and the smell of the breeze as it stirs up the ground around you. Feel nature and be on the edge of a positive change. ~Geary Hughes, JLT guide