I work in an office 4 days a week in a 3 story building, when it is nice out I walk the parking lot but to be honest it is mainly for exercise, not much to look at other then maybe a bird and trees. Every chance I get I like to go outside and walk. Our backyard has some grass but opens up to pine trees and a few small trails. Often we do see deer. There is a river near by also that we walk the dogs from the house but also many trails not far from us. I am also close to the coast (about 15 min drive). Of course when it is nice weather I sail on Narragansett bay and enjoy all the natural beauty of the bay.
It’s getting to be winter here, so it’s my indoor plants. This morning after a cardiologist visit, I spend five or ten minutes just tending to one snake (mother-in-law’s-tongue) plant – trimming, thinning, watering, communicating – and I felt so nurtured. There’s also a beautiful, huge mountain ash just outside the window that gives me much joy and comfort.
In the summer, parks, beaches, nature trails, the town pier, and my herb garden, bird bath and statue of St. Francis.
All is natural world, isn´t it? It is constantly appearing to my perception, happy to be able to decide perceiving kindness, love, music, beauty, pain, despair, sadness, joy, happiness, good food 🙂 and all other sensory qualities and be there much more present to it, more still and with an open heart. Who perceives? And if not perceiving? Meditation. Stillness. Who is?
I like the “start where you are”
mindset. I am fortunate to live in a
beautiful place with lots of nature. So
it’s easy to look out of my window as I’m
sitting here or driving through this
landscape and take in the changing
colors and views. I also occasionally
work in one of the roughest urban
areas in the country, and even there,
you can find a little nature. A tree
tucked between two buildings,
somehow managing to thrive. Or a
bougainvillea blasting out of the sidewalk
and climbing up a building. Or the occasional
Bird of prey. I often imagine what the city
will look like after we are gone.
When nature takes back over.
But for now, I’ve got my little patio with
a baby Redwood tree, birds and squirrels
and butterflies and bugs of all kinds to
keep me connected to nature. And my
life would be less rich without my weekly
bike rides in the wild land around here.
Bathing in nature. I am so lucky.
For the last 2 weeks or so I have been getting up before sunrise to look @ the moon, the stars & Venus & Jupiter; I am awestruck by their beautiful shimmering light.
I walk everyday, enjoying the company of the Big trees, Redwoods. I tend to my garden & all the little things sprouting & flowering.
I check out flowers as I walk & breathe deep.
I make a point of listening to the birds.
I try to look at the sky before bedtime.
I feel so much connection to the natural world; I would be lost without Mother Nature. She has & is healing me from all the loss in my life. I am thankful for all the joy & delight.❤️🙏🏻✨
I live within nature’s beauty and bounty every day. We moved to this area of Michigan a couple of years ago. We have actually lived in Michigan all but a couple years of my life. It is truly a gift to be here, experiencing the seasons, the wildlife and bodies of water small and large, all kinds of birds and not too long ago, an eagle in my backyard. Stunning! I spend a lot of time alone, but with this outside my door, I know what a gift this is and am just so grateful. The year we first lived here, I was sitting in my living room and a couple of huge turkeys showed up at my sliding glass doors, rather confused I think by their own reflections, and hung out for awhile. Another time, a family of 3 deer walked across the neighbor’s yard – from Papa to baby. There are lots of woods in the area, so one never knows what to expect.
In my work, I study the stream life and water, I observe the changes in my surroundings, I tend to trees and reforestation areas, and I try to teach children about the wonders of the earth. At home, I’m working to grow a food forest for my family and community. I go to nature to recharge spiritually, mentally, and physically. We ARE nature, and I feel incomplete unless I acknowledge that by connecting and contributing each day.
The biggest way is to spend as much time outside as I possibly can, especially going for long walks and out in a nature preserve when possible. Otherwise, just going outside when I can and spending as much time outside as I can.
Just as I walk to my detached garage to start the car and head to work, I notice my little yard. Depending on the weather, I delight in seeing dew on spring blades of grass; later, I watch the seeds atop un-mowed clover. When fall approaches i watch the leaves tuck themselves in among the grass and weeds hoping for a nap till spring returns. Soon I will watch the snow glisten along this same walk way. Grateful for eyes to see all this beauty before I see the beauty in the faces of the humans I work amongst in the office.
It’s beginning to transition to winter here. When it starts snowing I like to make time for snowboarding, it’s one of the easiest ways for me to lose track of myself. In the spring/summer months I’ll go hiking, play disc golf, enjoy company outside, camping. Right now it’s a little difficult to do either and I’ve been inside all week. Today is probably warm enough to do something before the rain comes back this weekend. Maybe I’ll find a way to get outside today.
I love letting the sunlight shine through my windows. Opening them to let the air in. Feeling the wind on my skin. Hearing and smelling and enjoying a rain storm. Nature makes me feel so small, and Im thankful.
I start most days by talking to my indoor plants. As I open the blinds, I notice the the sky, see the effects of the wind on the flags and look at the ground.
Thank you everyone for your kind words. I do feel the love of this community.
This question wakes me up to the fact that I don’t do anything to connect to the world in my everyday life. I sit in front of a computer from early morning to late evening, even though the weather is good I just enjoy it through a window. I grew up in a country that doesn’t have any snow, so that’s why I enjoy living in Minnesota with lots of snow. However, I don’t go outside to play with it. Due to this, today’s question alerts me that I am living an extremely unhealthy life, and I must make a change right away. Whereas my husband and my parent in-laws go out every day for a walk and enjoy nature, for the same reason that I must work on my school projects, so I stay all day long in my office except for lunch and dinner time so my family can see me. Overall, I would say that I appreciate today’s question. It wakes me up for a chance to take care of my physical health, for my mental health and eventually, for a better life.
I have an obvious answer, which is that I get outside for a walk every day, sometimes multiple times when I have a “movement snack” to refresh brain and body during or between meetings. (I have one of those jobs that involves looking at a screen all day.) I make sure to pay attention, really look, and appreciate, and my daily list of delights always has elements from the natural world that I tuned into.
The possibly less obvious answer is that I myself am part of the natural world, not separate from it. The dichotomy humans set up in their own minds is artificial. So if I connect with myself, I’m connecting with the natural world. If I feel myself in my own body, how my feet are touching the ground and how gravity holds me, how my breath moves in and out, I’m connecting with the natural world.
Living in the country makes it easy for me to connect to the natural world. Our home is surrounded by the forest…with the birds and deer and squirrels and rabbits …I get to see it everyday and experience as much or as little as I like. The last week or so- we had family visit- and then we all met at a resort…now Peter and I are on the road having some work done on our motorhome. I cannot wait to get back to my Country home…peace and quiet…and my normal routine!!
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I work in an office 4 days a week in a 3 story building, when it is nice out I walk the parking lot but to be honest it is mainly for exercise, not much to look at other then maybe a bird and trees. Every chance I get I like to go outside and walk. Our backyard has some grass but opens up to pine trees and a few small trails. Often we do see deer. There is a river near by also that we walk the dogs from the house but also many trails not far from us. I am also close to the coast (about 15 min drive). Of course when it is nice weather I sail on Narragansett bay and enjoy all the natural beauty of the bay.
It’s getting to be winter here, so it’s my indoor plants. This morning after a cardiologist visit, I spend five or ten minutes just tending to one snake (mother-in-law’s-tongue) plant – trimming, thinning, watering, communicating – and I felt so nurtured. There’s also a beautiful, huge mountain ash just outside the window that gives me much joy and comfort.
In the summer, parks, beaches, nature trails, the town pier, and my herb garden, bird bath and statue of St. Francis.
All is natural world, isn´t it? It is constantly appearing to my perception, happy to be able to decide perceiving kindness, love, music, beauty, pain, despair, sadness, joy, happiness, good food 🙂 and all other sensory qualities and be there much more present to it, more still and with an open heart. Who perceives? And if not perceiving? Meditation. Stillness. Who is?
I like the “start where you are”
mindset. I am fortunate to live in a
beautiful place with lots of nature. So
it’s easy to look out of my window as I’m
sitting here or driving through this
landscape and take in the changing
colors and views. I also occasionally
work in one of the roughest urban
areas in the country, and even there,
you can find a little nature. A tree
tucked between two buildings,
somehow managing to thrive. Or a
bougainvillea blasting out of the sidewalk
and climbing up a building. Or the occasional
Bird of prey. I often imagine what the city
will look like after we are gone.
When nature takes back over.
But for now, I’ve got my little patio with
a baby Redwood tree, birds and squirrels
and butterflies and bugs of all kinds to
keep me connected to nature. And my
life would be less rich without my weekly
bike rides in the wild land around here.
Bathing in nature. I am so lucky.
For the last 2 weeks or so I have been getting up before sunrise to look @ the moon, the stars & Venus & Jupiter; I am awestruck by their beautiful shimmering light.
I walk everyday, enjoying the company of the Big trees, Redwoods. I tend to my garden & all the little things sprouting & flowering.
I check out flowers as I walk & breathe deep.
I make a point of listening to the birds.
I try to look at the sky before bedtime.
I feel so much connection to the natural world; I would be lost without Mother Nature. She has & is healing me from all the loss in my life. I am thankful for all the joy & delight.❤️🙏🏻✨
I live within nature’s beauty and bounty every day. We moved to this area of Michigan a couple of years ago. We have actually lived in Michigan all but a couple years of my life. It is truly a gift to be here, experiencing the seasons, the wildlife and bodies of water small and large, all kinds of birds and not too long ago, an eagle in my backyard. Stunning! I spend a lot of time alone, but with this outside my door, I know what a gift this is and am just so grateful. The year we first lived here, I was sitting in my living room and a couple of huge turkeys showed up at my sliding glass doors, rather confused I think by their own reflections, and hung out for awhile. Another time, a family of 3 deer walked across the neighbor’s yard – from Papa to baby. There are lots of woods in the area, so one never knows what to expect.
In my work, I study the stream life and water, I observe the changes in my surroundings, I tend to trees and reforestation areas, and I try to teach children about the wonders of the earth. At home, I’m working to grow a food forest for my family and community. I go to nature to recharge spiritually, mentally, and physically. We ARE nature, and I feel incomplete unless I acknowledge that by connecting and contributing each day.
The biggest way is to spend as much time outside as I possibly can, especially going for long walks and out in a nature preserve when possible. Otherwise, just going outside when I can and spending as much time outside as I can.
Just as I walk to my detached garage to start the car and head to work, I notice my little yard. Depending on the weather, I delight in seeing dew on spring blades of grass; later, I watch the seeds atop un-mowed clover. When fall approaches i watch the leaves tuck themselves in among the grass and weeds hoping for a nap till spring returns. Soon I will watch the snow glisten along this same walk way. Grateful for eyes to see all this beauty before I see the beauty in the faces of the humans I work amongst in the office.
It’s beginning to transition to winter here. When it starts snowing I like to make time for snowboarding, it’s one of the easiest ways for me to lose track of myself. In the spring/summer months I’ll go hiking, play disc golf, enjoy company outside, camping. Right now it’s a little difficult to do either and I’ve been inside all week. Today is probably warm enough to do something before the rain comes back this weekend. Maybe I’ll find a way to get outside today.
I love letting the sunlight shine through my windows. Opening them to let the air in. Feeling the wind on my skin. Hearing and smelling and enjoying a rain storm. Nature makes me feel so small, and Im thankful.
I start most days by talking to my indoor plants. As I open the blinds, I notice the the sky, see the effects of the wind on the flags and look at the ground.
Thank you everyone for your kind words. I do feel the love of this community.
This question wakes me up to the fact that I don’t do anything to connect to the world in my everyday life. I sit in front of a computer from early morning to late evening, even though the weather is good I just enjoy it through a window. I grew up in a country that doesn’t have any snow, so that’s why I enjoy living in Minnesota with lots of snow. However, I don’t go outside to play with it. Due to this, today’s question alerts me that I am living an extremely unhealthy life, and I must make a change right away. Whereas my husband and my parent in-laws go out every day for a walk and enjoy nature, for the same reason that I must work on my school projects, so I stay all day long in my office except for lunch and dinner time so my family can see me. Overall, I would say that I appreciate today’s question. It wakes me up for a chance to take care of my physical health, for my mental health and eventually, for a better life.
I have an obvious answer, which is that I get outside for a walk every day, sometimes multiple times when I have a “movement snack” to refresh brain and body during or between meetings. (I have one of those jobs that involves looking at a screen all day.) I make sure to pay attention, really look, and appreciate, and my daily list of delights always has elements from the natural world that I tuned into.
The possibly less obvious answer is that I myself am part of the natural world, not separate from it. The dichotomy humans set up in their own minds is artificial. So if I connect with myself, I’m connecting with the natural world. If I feel myself in my own body, how my feet are touching the ground and how gravity holds me, how my breath moves in and out, I’m connecting with the natural world.
Living in the country makes it easy for me to connect to the natural world. Our home is surrounded by the forest…with the birds and deer and squirrels and rabbits …I get to see it everyday and experience as much or as little as I like. The last week or so- we had family visit- and then we all met at a resort…now Peter and I are on the road having some work done on our motorhome. I cannot wait to get back to my Country home…peace and quiet…and my normal routine!!