John Muir may have been just a young boy growing up in Wisconsin, but his age didn’t stop him from trying out his ideas. As a kid, he invented a horse feeder, a wooden thermometer, and an alarm clock that pushed him out of bed. When his feet landed on the floor in the morning (thanks to his alarm clock!), his mechanical desk lighted a lamp. Then John dressed. Just as he was finishing, his mechanical desk opened a book. It was time for John to start studying.

In 1867, John worked in a factory. One day, his hand slipped. He cut his eye with a file. He was blind for weeks. When his sight came back, he made a decision. He wasn’t going to be a mechanic or inventor anymore. He was going to walk all the way across the American West.

The trip changed John’s life forever. He became a different kind of student. He loved to study the sights of nature. He made detailed sketches of the things he saw. John especially loved the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California. John said nature was a “window opening into heaven.” He called it “a mirror reflecting the Creator.”

John started to write about the things he saw during his expedition. He wrote articles and books. They encouraged people to protect natural wonders. He made many people think about taking care of creation for the very first time. The famous Muir Woods—home of tree 76—are named after John.

Can you see God’s power reflected in the nature around you? In Romans 1:20, Paul tells us that creation has an important purpose. It shows us what God is like!