I was on my way to work this morning and I saw a sight that I hadn’t seen in quite awhile…..a sunrise. Normally the sun has been obscured by the over hanging clouds that spread an almost dreary feeling onto the earth, but not this morning. It was peaking its light through the cloud cover, and covering the sky with its dark orange glow signally the start of another new day. It got me to thinking.

That sun signifies many things for me. It signifies the dawn of a new day. It signifies life and starting fresh. It reminds me of the many times I’ve sat in the fall and spring woods and watched it shed it’s light on the natural world that surrounded me. It signifies another new beginning. It’s soldifies that there is a God.

As I drove down the road and noticed this sunrise it made me even more aware of the world around me. It even effected me on the way home and got me to thinking about how I look at the world around me as opposed to other people. Do others view it the same as those of us who have this appreciation for nature? Those that hunt, fish, hike, cross country ski, etc.

When I drive home I always find myself looking into the fields and woodlots that are around me. Whenever I take a trip anywhere you can always find me glassing the side of the road to check for any sight of an animal I can find. I look at the fence lines, the crop fields, the hills and valleys, and wonder what those particular places hold. How do all the natural things in that area of land fit together? What kind of wildlife lives there and what would be the best spot to have a close encounter with them? I do this constantly. It is just the way I view the natural world.

Now sure I do this somewhat because my predator mind is always thinking about where the best spot is to take game, but that isn’t all it’s about, because I also notice the way the wet snow clings to a branch; the way the sun glistens off the snow on that branch, and the plain natural beauty that surrounds it. It is how my mind works.

Do you think that non-hunters view the world in this same way? Do you think that a person in a Chicago city suburb has this view of the world?

I’m not trying to be stereotypical, I am just saying that those of us who have this appreciation of nature, no matter what our outdoor activities are, definitely view the world differently. We stop and appreciate what is around us and how it came to be.

So I ask all of you. How do you view the world? When you see a field, do you see just a field, or does it go way beyond that? I know I can say as the George Straight song says “I saw God today”.

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