I often enjoy watching the geese graze along the river near my home. I especially love when they start having their babies in the spring. When I pay close attention I can sometimes recognize the different families by the number of chicks trailing behind their parents. Being present makes me feel connected to them and as I witness their transformation I notice how their simple, unquestioning way of being in the world only gives back to the ecosystem in a positive way. 

Like any other creature apart from humans, geese take only what they need and leave only what can be composted behind. They live in rhythm with the Earth as they surrender to the seasons, migrating when they know the time is right. Their way of being is inherently relational rather than transactional. They inspire me to reflect on my own place in the web of life, to be more present throughout my day, and consider how even my smallest and most private actions ripple outward to affect not only those around me but the Earth itself.

Presence is one of the most loving gifts we can offer. Giving someone our full attention without distraction is an act of respect and connection. It allows us to listen beyond their words, to what is truly being said. We are all familiar with this feeling when someone meets our eyes as we share a vulnerable truth. It is the feeling of something unseen between us that is deeply real. This feeling can also happen when we are present to the Earth, too.

We live in a culture that is built for “convenience.” It’s full of systems designed to make our lives “easier” so we can work more efficiently. But in reality, these systems disconnect us as they allow us to rush through our day, rather than slow down and be present to what’s in front of us.

It makes me think about the difference between living in our heads versus our bodies. When we’re in our heads we often miss what’s right in front of us – a tree is simply a tree and we tend to take the world around us for granted. However, when we live in our bodies and feel the world around us through our senses, we see things for what they truly are. The soft bark of a tree provides shelter, the leaves that rustle in the wind provide nourishment, and trees themselves clean the very air we breathe. Water is more than something that simply flows from a faucet, water is life! Water is a resource that sustains every living thing, a gift from the Earth. The geese I pass everyday work hard to take care of their families just as much as we do. It becomes more apparent how everything has dignity – the trees, air, water, soil, geese… We become all the more aware that we are always in relationship, that by being present we cultivate loving relationships with the world around us.

The geese remind me that our role as humans is to live relationally too. When we stop seeing ourselves as separate and realize that we aren’t above or outside of nature, we begin to move in harmony with the rest of creation, just as everything else already does.

I know that we can’t untangle ourselves from these systems overnight. But I do think that when we slow down and make more conscious choices, we not only live in deeper relationship with the Earth, we also shape our own character.

Right now, many of us are worried about the current state of things and wondering what we can do. Presence is both an act of love and resistance. While there is much that is trying to drive us apart, presence is what keeps us connected. Presence is an openness to evolve little by little each day as we remember our call into wholeness.

You have been told, O mortal, what is good,
and what the LORD requires of you:
Only to do justice and to love goodness,
and to walk humbly with your God.
– Micah 6:8