Walking

Hubby and I have been walking in the mornings in order to escape the heat and humidity of summer afternoons. I often walk in the evenings with a friend. She and I walk in her neighborhood around a loop of paved sidewalk and new houses. Hubby and I enjoy walking back in the woods and through the farm fields. Here is why:
Yesterday our walk involved spotting a lot of tracks: bear, opossum, deer, large cat (maybe bobcat), various birds, and snake. We even saw evidence of a skirmish between a bird of prey and a snake; scratch marks from the talons were beside the snake track and then the snake track ended, so I am guessing it went in favor of the bird.
This morning our walk again involved the spotting of tracks. Today we added the possibility of a fox track. Then as we were walking around the corner we heard two birds arguing. One was a crow and the other a large bird of prey. The argument continued for a minute or so, and then we saw them flying out of a tree. The crow chased the larger bird, some sort of hawk, for a long way. I guess the crow must have had a nest in the tree.
The walks with my friend are good, long walks. We talk and laugh and encourage each other through difficult times. The walks with Hubby often include the same laughter and encouragement, but with an added element: God and his creation. It is so easy to imagine that I am most important and that God needs to respond right now to whatever problem I am having, but these walks remind me that there is a lot going on, right in my backyard, that I never even see. I see signs of life that occur without my presence, catch glimpses of important events- life and death even- that happen without my knowledge, and then I remember that God has all of those beings in His hands too. Everything will be fine and God will care for me just as I need to be cared for if I will just walk with Him.