Nature has always been a part of my life. When I was younger it was a constant companion, and another addition to an excellent childhood. I loved walking through forests up in Ouray or near Court House on Owl Creek, or up on Log Hill, and feeling the beauty of it. Just standing there sucking the fresh, blithe (never thought I'd use that word) air through my nose and filling my lungs made me feel like I could fly. I loved pretending to be the animals. I was a bear, a deer, a bird, a caterpillar; nature was my playmate. But at that point, when I was a small child and as a young teenager, nature was just something that was always there. I didn't understand it's purpose.
The first time I went to Idaho for wolf tracking camp was when I truly began to understand the role nature plays. Nature is not just a playmate - although it makes an excellent one - but it is also a teacher. Living wild - watching otters swim through the smoothest stream I have ever seen, laying in elk lays in the grass, watching meteor showers in an open meadow, hearing the wolves howl, practicing our fox walks - teaches us to be as human as we can. Nature teaches us to live in the moment, to embrace the earth that blesses us with its never-ending presence. It is a deity, a priest, a companion, a friend, and a mentor to living life to its fullest.
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Do you think our society should focus more on the lessons nature can teach us rather than it's beauty? I agree that we can learn from nature but more in a self-revealing way. I think it can foster realizations that would made outside of the natural world.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Juliette, nature does teach us in a self-revealing way, but it also teaches us about fundamental life-lessons. At it's crudest, about life and death. I also believe that society should focus more on the lessons that nature tries to teach us, though I also think that it is important the reveal in the beauty of nature. That beauty should never be forgotten or taken for granted.
ReplyDeleteA lovely post, Hannah (well done!). I like the way you describe Nature's evolution from "playmate" to "teacher". I think this is something Emerson will expand upon in his "Divinity School Address." We'll see...
ReplyDeleteFOr now, thanks for sharing your thoughts!