The hot air balloons are floating over the valley this morning, just a stones throw from my house. Like multi-colored dandelions a child might find in the front yard, helium balloons, or soap bubbles at a birthday party. Bigger though, and kept afloat by fire. They hang in the air effortlessly, at least to the eye of a casual observer, the effort really being out of sight, the burner working overtime to make the magic appear, well, magical. It seems that in life there is always something going on behind the scene that makes everything happen. Nothing really happens by itself, except of course, in nature. Nature happens. It happens with us or without us. It happens whether we want it to or not. It just happens.
Nothing of the un-natural world just happens, except deterioration. Anything, if left alone, will degrade, and deteriorate. It will not prosper, it will not multiply, it will not eventually manifest itself as more perfect than at the time of its creation. That is unless it has been constructed out of something taken from the natural world. A piece of furniture, for example, a hand crafted guitar. They will begin a process of deterioration, but they will eventually become richer, more well-regarded, and more valuable with time if cared for properly. The ageing of natural elements, people included, enables their depth, and the nature of their character to more fully emerge. People deteriorate physically, and mentally, but the true spirit of an individual, the essence of somebody, becomes more manifest with the passage of time.
That piece of furniture, or that hand-crafted guitar, if constructed with shoddy workmanship, or sub-standard material, will eventually become just another pile of wood. And it will end up being as worthless as the lack of care and attention invested in it.
As people, we are hand crafted, with natural (and supernatural) elements. We are created to be of value, and to reflect that value. As with nature, we just happen, but we happen with forethought, and with purpose. We must regard ourselves thoughtfully, purposefully, and take care to embrace, and protect, the essence of who we each are intended to be.
