No words will make you feel the breeze brushing through your hair as you stand at the rim of the Grand Canyon. It is hard to describe the awe of gazing into its mile-deep chasm and feeling your heart pound with emotion. Some places have moved me to tears because their beauty surpasses anything I have ever seen.
At home in the Rio Grande Valley, I’ve watched new subdivisions and shopping centers spread like wildfire. Construction is everywhere. As land values rise, homes are built closer together, and our neighborhoods grow denser. I notice that even in upscale neighborhoods. Public lands offer something many of us can no longer find close to home: room to breathe, room to wander, and room to simply be.
This post is not about any particular religion, but about the indisputable existence of sacred places that invite us to pause, reflect, and remember how small we are within God’s creation. We often think of sacred places as churches, temples, or cathedrals built by human hands. Yet, our national parks are sacred in their own way, and their beauty is, to me, beyond words.
Recently, I read about bulldozers and construction crews entering the Big Bend National Park. The border barrier project will permanently damage one of our nation’s greatest natural treasures. Elsewhere, the restructuring of the U.S. Forest Service will result in the closing of dozens of research stations that have collected irreplaceable scientific data through many years of research.
We often erupt in outrage when religious shrines or monuments are vandalized because they represent something sacred to us. But I wonder why the destruction of landscapes that belong to all Americans does not stir that same public outrage. This is not about political parties. It is about protecting this incredible inheritance for future generations. To me, our national parks are the other sacred places, and they deserve our protection.
Have you ever visited a National Park? Have you explored National Monuments and National Forests? These places that invite us to reconnect with our souls and our inner selves. These are places to reflect and renew. Some will take my breath away. Standing before their magnificence, I feel wonderfully small. Sunrises over the mountains, welcomed by birdsong and the murmur of a nearby river, are heavenly retreats.
These sacred places inspire me to give thanks wholeheartedly and deepen my love for our country. Their immensity overwhelms my sense of space and time. The cliff dwellings I’ve seen across New Mexico and Colorado transported me to a different time, and reminded me of the sacrifices made by those who came before me.
Before another year passes, visit one of our national parks. Stand still and feel the wind against your face. Breathe in the scent of fresh pine or the fragrance of rain-soaked earth. When you feel overwhelmed by the rapid pace and constraints of city life, escape to a national park and be reminded that some of God’s most beautiful sanctuaries were never built by human hands.
I hope no human hands destroy them.
This article was first published on my Substack Site.
