MARCH On...

 Did March roar in like a lion?  I don't remember. We had plans to take day trips once a week, starting with Medicine Park and the Wichita Wildlife Refuge on March 4. 

With a keen eye and good ear you can see the thousands of birds spiraling, flock after flock flying North over us. 

What I do know is that the month is nearly past, and in that time of thirty-one days our lives have traveled the red clay paths of the Wichita Mountains, seen the migration of thousands of birds, and watched and listened in awe as migratory birds spiraled upwards towards the heavens on Mother Nature's thermals. Being graced with a moment of beauty, we felt our hearts lifted upward in tandem thanks to God's beauty, and it would be grace and God that helped us through the rest of the month. 

When the steps challenged us with height and mud around Mt. Scott, we stopped. Is this smart we silently asked. Is there a better way to see the top than take a chance? How many times have we fallen, then picked ourselves up and marched on?  We turned and took a slightly easier path up the hill (in our car no less). The views were spectacular. Back on the flatlands and hillsides we explored we felt stronger and more assured of our older bones and feet taking one step after another. 

The old stone tower in the middle of nowhere took our memories back to a time when we climbed the tower walls in Scotland. The weather in Oklahoma is such sharp contrast to the Scottish hillsides, but the power of the land and fortresses is the same. Towers hold such history, such unbelievable fascination. Like moments in time and in our lives they stand resolute and strong whether in dark or light. 

We sat by the waters' edge gazing at the clouds reflecting on the surface. Far from civilization we listened to the whisper of times past. 

We marched on through the grasses and stood in awe of the worn and tangled trees. 

The bison roamed and rolled in the mud holes never noticing the interlopers, but the playful longhorn steers stopped and gave us a look that said, "This is my land..."  I could only think, "thank you for sharing this moment with us." 

In every life there come those days when light turns dark and fear gripes our hearts. Only a few days into March, we came face to face with an adage of time.  "Enjoy each day, it may be your last."  It could be your last, my last, or a loved one's last opportunity to climb those old worn Oklahoma hills.

 And it might also bring a time of miracles, giving us the opportunity to trust our faith.