Try This...

 

 

Need a break from the chaos at the mall?  

Want to slow down, even as everyone seems to be accelerating?

Need some peace and quiet?

Try this:

1. Put on warm "outdoor" clothes and comfortable boots.
2. Find a state park, wildlife refuge, national forest or wilderness preserve. (Remember. Just because you see a woods doesn't mean it's public land. All forests are not state parks. Trespassing on private property won't reduce your stress. In fact, it increases your stress when you are arrested, fined, thrown in jail, attacked by the land-owners guard dogs and chased back to your car. You have no more right to walk around in a stranger's woods looking for critters, than a stranger has to walk around in your garden looking for beans or tomatoes.)
3. Park your car downwind of the woods and fields you'll be walking.
4. Mark your location. (You'll want to get back to your car eventually, so use your compass, GPS or the magnetic lobe in the front of your brain. Just make sure you can find your way out of the woods in time for the Christmas Eve Services.)
5. Walk quietly into the wind.  Take only a few steps at a time. Stop often. Look around for wild animals.
6. See how close you can get. 
7. Have fun.

By the way, you should not pick up wild animals, as they are not inclined to respond favorably to being snatched off the ground and restrained. You don't want a wild animal to misconstrue your well-intentioned "grasping" as a threat. You should remember that most cute little furry forest dwellers associate being "caught" with being "eaten," so if you actually catch a live one, you'll have more raccoon on you hands than you handle.  Trust me in this. You're listening to the voice of experience.

Down-shift for a minute and slow down. You'll be glad you did.

Jeremiah 2:25a  -  Slow down. Take a deep breath. What's the hurry? Why wear yourself out? Just what are you after anyway?  But you say, "I can't help it."