Jessica Buhler ~Wendell Berry and Appalachian Trail hikers (Gatta)

“God is not a supreme executive but ‘the wildest being in existence,’ that ‘the presence of His spirit in us is our wildness, our oneness with the wilderness of Creation.” (Gatta) This quotation from Making Nature Sacred makes me think of about a woman with the trail name Blissful. I read all of her blogs on her own website and she talked a lot about God which led me to believe that hiking the Appalachian Trail was a spiritual journey for her. I think it is incredible to read blogs from other women who have done what most very as a great feat. I make me think if they can do I can to. How do they just let go and let God take control? How does one really get connected to the wilderness? I think that to let go you must really have a strong belief in God. I don’t believe you really need a specific religion to believe in God so anyone can put their faith in him they just have to be willing to take that leap. Maybe hiking in the wilderness is the perfect way to take that leap. Hiking and really absorbing your surroundings and learning to notice the little things that most people don’t is a great way to become connected to the wilderness. Based of what Gatta wrote, that leap is our wildness which is His (God’s) spirit and by going out in the wilderness which is his creation you are connecting with him.