Nature's Landscape

Nature's unrivalled genius lies not only 
in the unfathomable depth and breadth 
of her invention through timeless creation 
but the minutae of the complex interrelations
each of her creations are imbued with, an
endless chain of existence interdependent and
exquisitely graceful and it is with gratitude 
that her creatures observe the immensity of 
the landscape she has provided for practical 
and aesthetic sustenance. The most minor 
of her creations of no less importance than 
those whose heightened awareness conceits
their sense of consequential primacy. The 
forest is a monochromatic landscape of 
black and white in its winter guise; its floor
steeped deep in snow its trees dark and gaunt
its diurnal creatures stirring at dawn, the 
night-haunting raptors and four-legged 
stealth predators retiring at daybreak. Above 
the canopy an expanse of blue invites high 
flyers while woodpeckers cleanse tall old 
sentry hosts of larvae. Nuthatches and 
companion chickadees flutter here and there
while small furred creatures assiduously
search out seeds; their aquatic counterparts 
shelter under icy streams that meander 
through the forest. The setting sun casts 
fiery fingers lighting the tallest of the forest 
trees until dusk arrives and night falls.