Blog of Jonathan Teel

A gaucho village beckoned.  It offered silence from the chaos of a city that never sleeps, of honking car horns, dump trucks pounding pot holes, and the buzz of incessant activity.  A gust of wind picked up as I descended from the public bus. It dusted the old cars with dirt parked nearby as well as a group of middle-aged women carrying plastic grocery bags. I observed their sun-beat skin and preoccupied looks with curiosity.   I moved through the village streets with melancholy as if I had been there before in my dreams. To this quiet place of horses, farmland, and simplicity.   I arrived at a park and found shade under a maple tree. I wondered about the last rain when I rested my backpack on grass colored brown. There I contemplated  the quietude of this far off place.  There was a creek and it flowed through the park forming different pools for swimming or dipping. A small waterfall pounded slippery rocks down the hill from me.  I could see one of the swimming holes str

I walk in nature.  I walk along a trail that leads somewhere. It is nestled into the green growth of a forest whose trees reach the sky. The singing of birds echo in my ears, each with a distinct song and message. One bird here and one bird there.  I hear the branches of the trees as they sway in the subtle breeze. I notice my footsteps on the dirt path. A dog barks in the distance but I know it is not mine. My dog, Barish, is near, jumping over fallen trees, smelling the scent of animals, and investigating the home of a creature below the ground.  The trail takes me to a stream. Flowing water fills my eyes, ears, and heart. It tries to calm the endless thoughts that rumble through my mind like freight trains. I walk over a footbridge and it bounces against my weight. From my view the stream now sparkles in the sunlight, its rays pouring down from the heavens.   My busy mind continues unabated even if nature is slowly winning. I walk along a straightaway into an area witho