Near the break of day, I was awakened by the cold breeze that sometimes precedes the sunrise. A baby horse was near me looking at me with curiosity. When I got up, it ran away. I stretched my arms and legs in order to be ready to walk. This was my second trip to this place. Once before I had visited that desert and explored the west region. It was an open plain, covered by cactus and bushes, which has few hidden meadows, with some trees. There was also a rocky promontory with some interesting cliffs, standing alone in the midst of this large valley. It had been my natural observatory for the last solar eclipse. Now there was not any astronomical event to analyze. I was there to inquire about myself, to see inside my own soul.

After the sun rose, I headed toward the mountain. It was a clear blue morning. The wind was blowing my hair while I stopped in order to decide which route I would take to get to the base of the mountain. Usually during that season the desert is not too hot. It is possible then to find several kinds of animals and fruits. From these hills you could see many miles away. That is one of the reasons I really appreciate such place. Large open places gives you lots of room to think. The more I approached the hills the better I felt to make an evaluation of the last accounts.

After three days in that place I had conquered three cliffs and discovered two bird's shelters. I had met hares, horses, and crows and found some deer's tracks. I had written some lines trying to analyze my ideas. Also, I had obtained what I consider a good poem. Some paintings had been created by watercolors spread by my fingers. I had captured awesome views by shooting my camera. Partially, at least, I read three of the books I had taken with me. Drawings, sketched in pencil, covered several pages of my notebook. I could say it had been a successful trip. I thought, at least; It had been a productive one.

However, at that time I was going through a period of existential crisis. I wondered, whether what I had got as a poem, and what I had drew, what I had experienced, and what I had seen, were bringing more light to my mental and spiritual search. I had always enjoyed painting and writing while hiking in order to enhance the experience and complete the journey by recreating the scenery with diverse artistic activities. Different than other times, now, the thoughts, drawings and poems were totally intended to bring a solution to the conflict I had. More than analyzing improvements in technique, I focused on what I had brought out of my inner being. So the contents of the works scored much higher than the forms. The reached ideas counted far more than the steps I had made roaming around. The thoughts were more important than the words used to describe them.

The contact with nature was indeed very instructive and had refreshed my mind, but had I completely learned my lesson? The joy of that trip was not to be found, as usual, by having fun and exciting experiences. I was then entangled in an internal philosophical discussion concerning the existence of God. I had just started my Physics major in Science school, and the more steps I walked towards in scientific knowledge, the less solid I felt became the ground under me.

When I reached the base of the mountains, a conversation with myself started inside my head. Essential questions broke out like a storm inside my head. A stream of ideas overflowed with words in my thoughts. The inquiring process advanced faster as well the rhythm of my heart because of the physical effort.

"You cannot properly think of God because you cannot objectively take any measurement of a supposed interaction with God." My mind developed, in a sort of dialogue, the mainstream of the materialistic point of view of an average of physicists nowadays.

"However, you cannot deny God’s presence,” dialectally I answered myself, "There are many people who affirm God exists."

"So, what? Many people sharing a common idea does not make it true or false," the skeptical side replied, "There are many other religions with lots of believers, and that doesn't prove the existence of their god and goddess. Does it?"

"Okay. Despite everything, one thing I'm sure of: God is above all human science. And God doesn't need to be proved in order to be believed. For example, can any postulate of Physics -or any exact science- be proved?

"No, surely not."

"There is always a set of fundamental axioms upon which the knowledge is built. These basic facts cannot be proved, but they are to be accepted to provide unity to the theories. A postulate is accepted on the generality or recurrence of certain phenomena. In the same way, God cannot be is an axiom of everything that cannot be proved though God might be experienced and understood by anyone. Also, and this is true, it cannot be proved that God does not exist." To this endless discussion there was no exit. Nevertheless, physically I had no option to follow, but had to keep walking upwardly.

I reached the base of the mountain after the last hill. There was a sharp change in the aspect of the surroundings. Before, the ground was covered with bushes, now the slope was more steep and the ground became arid and rocky. I stopped for a moment and I breathed deeply. I was ready to advance step by step, both the brain walk and the hiking, expecting to get a conclusion as well as a rewarding feeling for reaching the top. An acute whistle made me stop and, revolving, I looked around trying to find the source of that sound. Scanning the surroundings my sight caught up the flight of a hawk not so far from me. With fast and short movements it passed from one side of the mountain to another crossing across the lace where I stood. It was, indeed, an amazing bird.