The Hilton Estate and Quite Time

Beautiful Acacia Trees

During our first Biology Practical it hit me how excited I was just to be walking around in nature, and not just anywhere, but in SOUTH AFRICA.  I cannot say it enough, that I am so blessed to have this opportunity, and how excited I am to be in Biology!

Caryn describing the characteristics of an aloe plant!

There was aloe plant licking and a spitting contest with Impala poop involved (probably the most foreign things I have ever put in my mouth), but I think my favorite moment would have been the quite time we had just to read our Bibles and reflect on the beauty of God's creation.

In life, this is probably one of my most favorite things to do, but I do not do it nearly enough.  It is not always that I cannot find the time, but I occupy myself with other things that I seem to think are more important.  But living at African Enterprise, right next to a nature reserve, I feel that I have no excuse not to get out and experience life as God created it just a little bit more.

A shot of the burned and new grasses with Bethany in the background :]

During our reflection time I did a little bit of reading, some thinking, and a lot of just listening to the sounds of the wind and birds.  I did not hear one hint of human life, no car engines or airplanes, just me and nature as God intended for it to be.  

Besides the time we had to simply be alone, I learned a lot about the cycle of burning grass and why it is effective.  I did not know that burning could be such an effective tool to the regrowth of new vegetation.  In a controlled area the fire is able to wipe out the old and dead vegetation, clearing way for new plant life to grow while fertilizing and aerating the soil.  When something like a tree is burnt down, the roots still remain intact under the soil, therefore the tree is able to grow again.

New grass and Brittany Watson's awesome rain boots.