natural shelter

I've been following a path, a mountain path, one that I have not trodden before. And it has brought me high up the mountain side. And I've just arrived at a spot where a massive, slabby boulder is lying against the cliff face, creating a natural shelter, a sort of cave on the mountain side. Outside the ground is slightly damp, but under the shelter of this large rock, the ground is dry and welcoming. Hanging from the roof and walls of this cave, there are delicate ferns and fine mosses. These plants are appreciating the shelter.

Today the weather is fine, and at the moment I feel fit and healthy, not in need of this shelter. But seeing it, I know that there are times, there are times when each of us needs to rest, when we need a place to feel safe and secure, to recoup our energy, to heal. And seeing this natural shelter, it reminds me of this: to be grateful when I am not in need of such shelter, and to remember that there are times when it is necessary. To grow also involves a lot of healing, and that healing takes some time, time and a place, a place where we feel secure enough to relax, where we feel held.

This is what this natural shelter is reminding me of today. And I am grateful that, today at least, I am not in need of it. But I am also grateful that such shelter exists, for those moments when I do need it.