Wonders of Nature

Because I love nature and meditating on its wonders, I can pause to take in the beauty of a flowing river and of a lone bird soaring high above the ground. And the following quotes have made it clear to me that nature has some valuable lessons to teach us:

• "A river cuts through rock, not because of its power but because of its persistence."
• "A bird sitting on a tree is never afraid of the branch breaking because her trust is not on the branch but on her own wings."
• "The tree that bears the most fruits gets stoned the most."

But there are wonders of nature that I don't have to see to appreciate them. Just thinking on how miraculous they are is enough. Let me tell you of three. Only three.

The first is the nature of two gases: oxygen and hydrogen. As every high schooler knows, oxygen is needed for combustion. What many may not know is that hydrogen gas was largely abandoned as the gas of choice for balloons due to its extreme flammability and the associated risk of explosions.

You know what? When you react those two highly flammable gases, oxygen and hydrogen, you form water which extinguishes fire. Isn't that a wonder?

Equally astonishing is the nature of sodium and chlorine. Sodium is a very reactive element while chlorine is so harmful that Germans used it to kill enemy soldiers in the First World War.

You know what again? When you react those two poisonous elements, sodium and chlorine, you form sodium chloride (table salt) which we add to food every day.

The last wonder is how atoms are mostly vacuum but the objects we see around us are solid. Both the nucleus and the electrons of an atom occupy tiny spaces of the atom.

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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed this story, you might also enjoy "The Wonder of Honeybees".