Nature is like a close friend to me. Being in open air enhances my mood and attitude. Taking a trip down the memory lane, I fondly remember evening park visits with my dear grandmother and siblings. We would walk in huge park with free spirit and freedom. The swings placed in the park used to be a favourite hangout zone for us. I marvel what make the children so courageous to climb up the ladder of spiral swing. I feel it is the support and aura of Nature (plants, trees, sky, sun and open air) which encouraged the kids to take a leap of faith and complete the hard and difficult rides in the park. As a kid, we would ride bicycles in the park and play with other children. Being outdoors appealed to me and my siblings while growing up. On the occasions when we could not go to the nearby park, we would substitute that with playing in the open car park space of the house. Evening time use to be merrily spent playing wide variety of games. In school, we use to have dedicated playtime period two days a week where students could play under the big open sky. Every child perpetually loved this period in school. I guess the answer was simple. That playtime happens in close proximity to nature. It can be easily interpreted that nature has the power to influence the children in the right direction.
Recently I studied about a popular Naturalist from history, Ralph Waldo Emerson, he delivered lectures at the American Natural History Society. The excerpts from his lecture below demonstrates how Nature increases the man’s intellectual ability.
“Nature is particularly skilled in that rule of arithmetic called Permutation and Combination. With a few elements, Nature has converted into countless variety of substances that fill the earth. Look at the grandeur prospect from the mountain top. Every artist knows that beyond its own beauty the object has an additional grace from relation to surroundings objects.”
Look at the sky above you, see its abundance. It showers love on everyone on the planet earth. Observe the birds flying in the sky. They travel from one destination to another by flying. They keep moving. The tree standing tall in the garden provides shade to us and shelter to birds. The flowers blossoming in the garden provide us with a reason to smile. The clouds in the sky shower their love by providing rainfall. The wind in the atmosphere provides cooling to us. The mother earth gives us a place to live, a place to stand on. The ocean, seas and lakes provide water to us. Nature is kind and giving. A child can spend countless number of hours observing the trees, birds, flowers, sky and creations of nature. When we are in harmony with nature, we treat everything as equal and lovable.
We all love our birthdays. On this birthday, I would like to take steps towards giving love to nature and everyone that nature loves. I promise to take actions which are beneficial for me and the environment around.
Initiatives like plant a sapling on the special day of the year is one such example of showing your love to nature. Using paper judiciously is another example as when we save paper, we save trees indirectly. Using electricity only when necessary help us commit to conserving fossil fuels. In our daily lifestyle, we can incorporate numerous small acts whereby we can show our care and respect to the nature. We need to make this process of caring for nature a habit and easy process for us. My next thought is how to make it smooth flowing. Like a river flows smoothly, we can care for our precious nature easily. The first step towards it is connecting with nature. Connect with nature on a daily basis. When you wake up in the morning, step out on the balcony or a suitable place and look at the sun in the sky and greet good morning sun. All of us can enjoy the bounty of nature happily. I would love to know your ways of loving nature.