North Louisiana’s Glynn Harris grew up in the village of Goldonna, hunting and fishing on nearby Saline Bayou and Molido Creek. It was pretty much assured he would develop a love for the great outdoors because his father was a state predator control officer and his mother an avid bird watcher. Both parents were also devout Christians who raised their children in the church and led them to have a close relationship with God.
Harris went on to become one of the nation’s most popular outdoor writers and for decades has regaled his fans with interesting and funny tales of the outdoors. He has written for such prestigious magazines as Outdoor Life and Field & Stream and has won more than sixty Excellence in Craft awards from the Louisiana Outdoor Writers Association (LOWA) and the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association. Harris’s entertaining and informative articles have also garnered him LOWA’s prestigious Arthur Van Pelt Lifetime Achievement Award, the Sports Legends of North Louisiana award and induction into the Louisiana Chapter of Legends of the Outdoors Hall of Fame.
Two constant themes that run throughout Harris’s books and articles are his love for nature and his faith in God. Now, he has combined those themes in a new book titled Seasons: Connecting with God Through the Year in His Great Outdoors.
The book is divided into four parts—Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter—and through scores of enjoyable tales, Harris shows how God’s grandeur can be seen and experienced in the great outdoors. Whether recalling a memorable hunt or describing fascinating wildlife behavior, Harris weaves an appropriate Bible verse into each story that illustrates God’s glory and everlasting love.
In one chapter, Harris recalls fond memories of how his mother would cook for days at Christmas time, just to give the food away to a poor elderly couple who lived nearby so they could have a nice Christmas dinner. It was one of his family’s holiday traditions and it brings to mind the passage from Deuteronomy that states, “Do not let these memories escape your mind as long as you live.”
In another story, Harris discusses how much he enjoys watching the hummingbirds stop at his feeder as they pass through Louisiana on their migration to their winter homes farther south. It reminds him that Christians, too, are just passing through our time here on Earth because our real home is in heaven. As Jesus promises in the book of John, “I am going there to prepare a place for you.”
Many of Harris’s tales revolve around the grandeur of God’s creation. Most hunters will agree that one of the great pleasures of being outdoors is watching the sun rise or set. Few things are as beautiful as the sky changing colors through beautiful shades of orange, yellow, and purple. To Harris, it is a visible reminder of the power and glory of God. As Psalms 19 states, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.”
Seasons is composed of one hundred such heartfelt and uplifting stories that readers of all ages will enjoy. The book can be purchased through Amazon, or an autographed copy can be obtained by sending $20 to Glynn Harris, P.O. Box 1102, Ruston, LA 71273.
Dr. Terry L. Jones is a professor emeritus of history at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. An autographed copy of “Louisiana Pastimes,” a collection of the author’s stories, costs $25. Contact him at tljones505@gmail.com
