There are times in my life where odd little synergies come into focus, today was one of those days. For the past couple of days, the Red River Valley has been snuggled under a blanket of dense fog. Causing some airline delays and slowing travel, from an artistic perspective, I LOVE it! Dense fog means a literal frosting of trees and the surrounding landscape, a photographers dream.
As I drove home from the Dakota Grown conference, learning more about the state of ND, community, locally grown foods, programs for the hungry and nutritious school lunches, I remarked at the landscape as I travelled the 35 miles or so to my own family farmstead. It occurred to me the real beauty of the fog that surrounds be as I travel. The fog was not that of some horrific event that we might have seen in years past, smoke from forest fires, ash from an eruption such as the Mt. St. Helens eruption years ago, no, this was something purely natural and beautiful. Yes, it caused us to slow down, but perhaps that was just what the doctor ordered?
And then the synergy hit me. I had just spent the day focusing on the beauty of those things nearest to me. The food grown in our own state and community. The programs to enrich our communities and our local schools. How we can choose to be inspire positive changes in the world around us. Often times we get so caught up in the "global economy" and being "worldly," but, do we need more "Fog" in our lives? You see, what fog does for us is obscures the distance, forces us to focus on those things which more closely surround us. It requires us to slow down, be more cautious, look out for one another. To think locally, to focus on our neighbors, community and the actual environment we live and breathe in. Because while one person has the potential to change the world in a small way, we each hold that opportunity to make great changes in the very world that surrounds us; what we eat, what we do, how we live and the legacy we leave.
I will continue to share what I have learned today, as I process all that I have soaked in, but for now, I am enjoying the pure beauty of the fog and the effect is has on the landscape of my world. I hope you are taking some time to enjoy some fog in your life too!