Nature...what is it? The mountain, an early morning chill as I ride my bike through the vineyards in California and through the hills above Napa Valley

And the beach, the wonderful, glorious sounds and smells and foods of the beach. The lap and roar of the waves; they never stop, wave after wave after wave. What wonderful, blessed peace.

Hmmmmmmmmmm and the smells as I ride along.on my Saturday bike ride. In spring, miles from the strawberryfields, I can smell the sweet sugary scent of the fresh strawberries. So good, warm and juicy when I bite down on them.

This is god, religion, blessings and worship. The sights, sounds, tastes, odors of the natural world,just given to us....just given to us.

It's not paganism; it's appreciation of the gifts our creator or creators have given us to enjoy and preserve and care for.

Our sin is how we are destroying it. I pray the gods know that so many of us love and enjoy this earth and it's gifts from snowy pines, mountain lakes and streams filled with fish to flat, dry deserts dangling snakes and spiders at us. And I hope we can keep it.