Many startling things came about from my mind whilst observing such beauty. Throughout the course of my life, I have been disfigured by horrible events which have changed my view of mankind. During these harsh times there has only been one thing which can be described as having saved the sanity of the souls and minds in a state of danger. It is a thing inherent and natural, which existed at the birth of humanity. Motionless yet nimble, contiguous yet distant, it still today stands alone and never changes; it has a presence everywhere and never disappears. It might be referred as; beauty, hope, scorn, relief, nostalgia, tranquility, dismay, or in its simplistic form, nature.

The very first moment I heard, “We’re going to the park!” my senses were enlightened, not for my love for nature (which did not exist during that time) but rather for the opportunity to alleviate any stress caused in the classroom. This however, changed immediately when I was exposed to the peculiar, but fresh air I had not been aware in my years as a teenager. During my observations in the nature of Oak Hill Park, of all its beautiful structures, wide array of species, and intriguing parts the one true glorious monument was an illuminated white, desolate feather lying on the opaque and vigorous rocks, hugging and protecting it as if the feather was a long-lost child and the rock was its nurturing mother. Observing this feather for three days I came to adore and cherish it’s reminiscence of how hope is created from within us. This essentially led to a sense of nostalgia sparked from the image of a lone feather, to the memory of being an outcast but then finding one who looks within the soul, rather than the exterior. Aside to the feather was the pond. The effervescent bubbles and running ripples of the pond produced a feeling of relaxation, feeling like I was the only human being in this park, with God leaving the animals and me to interact and experience firsthand nature, undisturbed. My eyes could not help but glance at the fountain, in the center of the pond which had geese and ducks slithering around it and at times, I was agitated greatly by the incessant noise. The fountain of youth, as I came to call it, recycles the water from the pond. This made me ponder the question of similarity between nature and a human’s daily life. Us humans are akin to the pond, as we generate integrity, hope, morality, intelligence, and strength from our past (just like the fountain), and therefore can regenerate ourselves into a sharper individual. My musings lingered to every place in the park, due to my opened senses and told myself to focus back to my lonely feather. Thoughts quickly turned to hope and despair for the feather to receive some water for its dry and poor, wrecked body. I felt as if the cold-hearted pond was taunting my feather, with an immense amount of liquid in its holdings, yet the inability to share its vital nutrient to my poor feather. In times of cruelty, the only object that could protect it was the rock. The dying, weathered feather represented the physical human body, which provides evidence that its soul and mind is much different than its body and physical exterior. In times of crisis, our only the slightest bit of humanity remained, were not of physical strength yet many still carried hope and it illuminated their hearts and minds till the final moments. Ultimately, the feather’s heart is strong despite times of peril and loneliness, no matter what the weak shell tells one, and through all its ruggedness it has survived, and can keep on living its life with hope for all things possible.


The beauty and underlying aspects of the pond enabled me to look beyond what is offered by sauntering and fully committing to the beauty nature provides. Water is obviously the main component of the pond, but most importantly the foundation of all creation. Whilst in my deepest thoughts about the past and the mistakes I have endured, the pond went as far to remind me of my Christian faith. Being brought up in a religious background, reading the bible; it has a special place in my heart for in the noble bible passage of Jesus walking on such water. Normally such sentiments would be of mediocre value saved for Sunday school; however it is different once you witness the true beauty of water and all of the amazing things to produce mankind. Digressing back towards hope, a single drop of water to me resembles a single desire of hope. Memories contributed my experience to the park tremendously, because I could not prevent myself from pondering about the past. Snorkeling through the translucent waters of Hawaii and dipping my little toes in algae-filled, green waters of Monterey Bay did not inhibit me to revitalize the sense of hope in such an amazing natural resource. From hoping to see a turtle to losing my very own sandal brought me hope that it would appear in the rush of the waters. Looking afar into the ocean I hoped dearly that these things would happen. Indeed, it did. To the world and me, water gives life, but it also has the power to take it away. This is true in a literal sense, exemplified in Hurricane Katrina, washing down mankind with its mighty roar or in a heartfelt attribute in the sense that makes us realize the inadequacy of all we have done. For myself, I will always continue to see every drop of water as an expression of hope and a well for miracles.

Through the changing of society, nature will always be in our presence. Nature is a world within a world. My view of it has changed tremendously from being naive, seeing only the literal objects, and now I see it much more clearer and deeper than ever before. Just like my feather, it has a heart of great willpower, but many tend to overlook its dry, dull qualities that I certainly never want to go back to thinking. Nature is not just animals, trees, water, soil, but rather a creation, something that was there until the time of existence. The leaves grow old and fall off and become part of the soil, the water evaporates and returns to the sky, and even the wilderness decomposes to become one with the greatness of the cycle. In nature’s cycle, lies hope. Hope is the greatest gift and power we as humans have, it gives us strength in our darkest hours and relieves us from our anguish. To demonstrate this, its creator has given us a beautiful mirror to view its effects and its nature. The mirror is of course the nature of the wilderness, to me epitomized in my view by my feather and the waters that lay beside it. Nature’s creator has brought beauty, tranquility, and hope to humankind, and principally the strength to guide us through any hardship we face in times of trouble, for our minds and hearts are much greater than our appearances.