It’s Saturday morning, my freshly poured large cup of java sits in front of me, and I am feeling quite relaxed this morning. This past week wasn’t nearly as stressful as the previous few have been. And here is one reason why this is so.
The above photo is that of a lovely little park just steps away from Lake Michigan in Evanston, IL. I took this photo while on a walk simply to, ‘relax’ and to, ‘de-stress’. And guess what? It worked! I walked along the path of this calming park space while listening to the birds chirping, the wind blowing through the trees, and the sound of the fountains as they sprayed into the air. Simple gestures which made the world of difference in my state of mind this past week.
This got me thinking about coping with stressful times/moments, and how we have access to either the real thing outdoors, or perhaps looking at photos or videos of nature brings a calming to our senses. I really do believe this occurs because of our innate knowing that everything is connected, and that nature is as ‘real’ as it gets. I think stress and worry, frustration are all human conditions; nature, however, does not experience these emotions, it simply, ‘is’. If this is the case, then being in nature is surrounding ourselves with basic, unencumbered, stress-free environments. When we tune into that atmosphere, our stress can melt away; it’s almost as if intuitively we begin to align with it because it feels, ‘right’. It makes me wonder if we humans do ourselves a great disservice by allowing stress and fret to overcome us, while nature merely beckons for us to be reminded that it’s all surface stuff; it’s created in our minds and doesn’t have to be there.
I hope this makes some sense to you. I wanted to share my observations of this past week while walking around this enjoyable area. I am beginning to understand that our ‘real’ selves are part of nature, part of the basic, calm flow of energy, and that it is only by allowing the noise and chatter of worry and stress to be at the forefront of our minds that we become disconnected from the true part of ourselves.
Here’s to a re-connecting with nature and our ‘real’ selves!
The Chicago Files 