Adrianna - Natural 1 - Be Still

Adrianna Carter

Be Still and know that I am God. – Psalms 46:10

To be honest I was not totally excited about our class adventure to the Noland Trail when I first arrived. It had been a busy day and all I wanted to do in that moment was skip class and just “be”. But as I illegally parked my car and walked to our meeting cite, I couldn’t help but let God fill me up as if I were a balloon. Every step seemed to be in the direction of peace – talk about a sacred journey. I approached the crew as Dr. Redick began calling attendance and for some reason I knew this would be a great opportunity to experience God for the day.

            We began by “being”. We stood and all of my senses were thoroughly engaged in my surroundings. To my right I heard a still creek; to my left a rushing river. Lavender, soft pink and orange clouds back dropped by the sun taking his leave filled my gaze. Gnats irritated my nose as my hands clenched my pen for warmth as the sun tucked himself into his blankets.  Usually it takes me some time to empty myself from the day and “be” in the moment but today it happened incredibly quickly. God revealed himself to me almost instantaneously.

            As a believer in Jesus Christ, prayer, meditation and flow are critical to being in relationship with God. That Wednesday, in particular, I had not yet spent one moment talking to God or allowing myself to experience him. I needed to experience flow; I needed to zone in and just “be” with my creator amongst the things He created, despite the presence of my classmates.

            As I began to zone in and grasp some type of flow overcoming me there was one verse of scripture that was setting just as quickly and beautifully as the sun.  “Be still and know that I am God” from the book of Psalms chapter 46 verse 10. I needed to be still and embrace the now sacred place that I had so quickly been introduced to. I have been to this spot on several occasions but none were quite like this one. My surroundings had never spoken to me so vividly before. As we transitioned through the trail everything came to life. I had stepped out of everything homogenous and embraced the new and unique. The birds sang melodiously, the smell of pine was potent and this moment was probably one of the coolest experiences I have ever had.

            This experience taught me a lot more than I thought it would. Day-to-day I am always n the go but in every moment there is a time to just be still, take in your surroundings and experience life in a new, surprisingly cool way.

            I could also recognize that the elements spoke to each one of us very differently. I can recall our walk back through the trail hearing the chirping of crickets. To me it was outstandingly calming, still, and quiet but for another student it was loud. That in and of itself speaks to our differing journeys and the difference in what we find to be sacred.