Given to give !

The blue mountains, known as Nilgiris in regions of Ooty, Kotagiri and Connoor in south India have a special place in the  of geographical history as holiday resorts. The Kodiacanl hills too have a similar significant place in the tourist history of hill stations. 

I have had an impression that the mountain ranges acquired its name because of the bluish hue of colours that one can observe in the morning hours over the 'Nilgiri' hills. 

A recent experience in another range of mountains indicated that on  a day when the sky is not cloudy but blue, the mountains will have a bluish hue lasting till the sun is bright and radiant after sunrise.

The sky is not just a canopy over us but a provider of different hues of colour in nature! The landscape is created by the plant life which receives the given hue of colours, humidity and light! The rocks, trees, plants, flowers and the grass on the soil receive and reflect what they are given !

What we are given is lot more than what we carry with us as our own !

When the overgrown flower beds in our garden were cleared of overgrowth of grass by our domestic helper and the plants looked different with fresh looking soil underneath, I realised that the domestic helped exercised her sense of stewardship unasked for! 

What is given needs keeping!

It is for the same reason why any war is against the norms in nature and a breach of the 'covenant of stewardship' expected of humans in response to the abundance in nature of which we are the keepers !  

To have a desire to possess power and dominate over others is a poor reflection of human behaviour! The current state of affairs in the global scene, is a competition to establish control over others. It is a time of lamentation for earth to be restored to its role of being a source of wellness for all! Now the global powers bargain over fossil oil, minerals, controlling sea and air passage, or monitor nuclear power! 

When Anna and I gazed in amazement at the sunrise over the 'blue mountains' last week, there was a refreshing experience of the bountiful earth we are blessed with! 

The earth is ours and all on who dwells on it! 

How can we bring this consciousness to lead the rulers of the world to dwell in humility and accountability and to be better stewards of what we have been given! 

Each day, we receive sunrise and sunset! We are given this blessing to spread goodness far and wide!

"O Lord my God, When I awesome wonder,

Consider all the works Thy hands have made,

I see the stars, I hear the nighty thunder,

Thy pow'r throughout universe displayed. 

When through the woods and forest glades I wander,

And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees,

When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur,

And hear the brook, and feel the gentle breeze; 

Then sings my soul... How great Thou art, How great Thou art"

That is how the hymn writer Carl Boberg, experienced nature!

M.C.Mathew( text and photo)