O, what unfettered joy!
To see nature's ultimate majesty,
In all her sublime beauty,
What rapture!
What beautiful, wholesome bliss!

I wend my way down the winding river,
Lost amidst the allure of the water and the wild.
Three bald eagles fly in front of me,
What magic!

I pause, study one as it perches on a tree branch.
What marvelous, incredible regality!
It stares at me,
Bold and unafraid.
I stare back, in absolute awe of its perfect stateliness,
Its valiant bearing.

Less than a mile away, a highway hurries by--
Unaware and unappreciative,
Busy bees bustle from one commute to the next,
Ever they are slaves to the dollar,
The most grotesque of all the shades of green.

Trade your dollars for trees, I beg you.
Trade your asphalt strips for quiet waterways,
Your automobiles for kayaks, canoes.

Trade your hardened heart for the heart of the woods,
Your closed corporate soul for the expanse of the ocean--
Be alive, but be more than alive--
Be lively and vivacious and simply...
Live.

Trade your hustling life for quiet moments,
For solitude and appreciation,
For the quietude and sublimity that can only be found in one place--
Nature.