Wild, Wonderful Wednesday

At the end of May we as a congregation were down at Bible camp, which is situated in the Ardennes. The camp land itself is just outside of a picturesque little village called Solwaster, through which a road winds and turns on its way through the village and the hills that follow. If you follow the road, you drive past a tree called the “seven oak tree” which is seven oak trees grown into one. You then wind your way to the “larger” village of Jalhay. This is also the way to the Gileppe dam. 

But if you stay at camp you can take a walk through the woods and see all of the wonderful wild things that God has given us to marvel at. Even on a walk during the day it is possible to see all sorts of amazing things. During our day at camp with the church, several of the members spotted what we figure was a lynx, a wild cat. It came sauntering onto our fields, looked up to see the people talking a bit further off (with fingers pointing) and serenely turned and walked back the direction he had come. 

We know that there are wild boar in the woods. In the Fall we are not to go into the woods after sunset because the hunters are out - as are the wild boar. I remember one of our summer camp weeks when we took the campers into the woods to play a game of hide and seek in the evening. They had to find the leaders, who had hidden themselves in the woods. But the leaders were meant to make animal sounds and scare the campers a bit. 

I was hiding up in some bushes a good way away from anyone else. The sounds that one then hears in the night are amplified as you yourself become as quiet as you can be (which is not very quiet to be honest). I am sure that I heard a wild pig further off in the woods. Then again, it could have been a badger, as they also come out to hunt in the night. It could have simply been a mouse. 

Lynx in Belgium

We have come across deer, marten (a sort of ferret), mice of all sorts and sizes, and rats. In the fields the young boys from the Benjamin week love catching grasshoppers and frogs of all sorts. We have small hazel worms (a type of salamander without legs) and bugs of every color and size.  

More recently we have been made aware that there is a distinct possibility that we could come across a wolf or two, since they have been re-introduced to the area. Of course most of these wild wonders are only visible in the early morning, dusk or deep in the night - not usually times that we are up and about. Or you have to keep your eyes open for them as you go walking along through a tuft of grass or clump of bushes. 

My experience is that God loves to surprise us. We simply have to be willing to open our eyes and see what He is showing us. You do not have to go far. This Spring our yards are all full of snails, with or without houses on their backs. Insects of every plumage buzz through our lives without us even noticing (other than the worry that they might be a mosquito). I want to be aware of what God has provided in this life so that I can also see what He is doing in my life. 

What do you see in your neck of the woods?