Dy 8 - natural world

I took my car in for its MOT yesterday - so I was thinking that the blog might be about getting a spiritual service - being roadworthy etc etc.  However something else caught my attention whilst I was at the test centre

I had the dog with me, so instead of sitting in the car and driving through the bay myself for part of the way they asked me to get out and take the dog with me whilst they drove the car through (not sure if you will all know what Im on about cos the test centres in N Ireland are different from anywhere

else Ive ever lived - but its not important so read on!! )   I had the dog on a lead and wasnt allowed to take her into the waiting area so ended up just wandering about outside in the freezing cold for twenty minutes waiting for the car.   The place is on an industrial estate and it is busy.  There were cars coming and going all the time, plus there was a motorcycle driving test place in the same area so bikes were buzzing about too.    I took the dog to a small verge of grass beside a hedge and noticed that there were lots of birds about.  In particular a cheeky robin was sitting looking at me about three feet away.  The birds didnt seem to be the slightest bit bothered by the people and vehicles busily and noisily doing their thing just yards away.

The day before when I had toaken to dog out onto a piece of waste land between Sainsburys supermarket and petrol station we had come across three huge rabbits lolloping across the path in broad daylight.  Despite the fact that I had a terrier with me they didnt seem too concerned.  I was really surprised to see them and wondered where the disappeared to given that their direction of travel seemed to be bordered by the motorway.

This morning I woke to the horrible news that some thugs had broken into a Zoo in Amsterdam and shot a rhino in order to get its horn.

It struck me that nature is incredibly accommodating of us as a species.  We build on land which belongs to frogs and beetles and bees and rabbits.  And those animals move over to make space for us.  They live alongside us and never give us anything but pleasure.  How sad would the world be without birdsong??  We all know what the world would be like without bees.  I must confess that in my average day I barely ever stop to think about the life which is all around me - I take it utterly for granted that a whole ecosystem is just there and that it really has little to do with me.   But of course it has everything to do with me.  I can become angry at the amount of plastic in the sea killing turtles and dolphins, but do I ever stop to think about that when I reach for the next bottle of milk?   I might think that if I recycle then Im doing my bit, but am I really?   If the next house I buy is newly built on a previously green patch of ground , how many creatures will I be making homeless.   If I drive my polluting car when I could walk.......

I genuinely dont often really think about this stuff.   Im in no way an eco warrior.  But today I feel the Lord prompting me to be thankful for the wonderful creation he has made, to pay more attention to the wonders that are all around me and to be careful.   I might not be the sort of person who shoots rhinos for fun - but if I am playing a part in decimating any part of God's creation am I really any better than they are?