Suddenly, Wildlife!

Ghost Crab, Assateague Island

You could be in the middle of the city, or a jungle, or a suburban jungle of lawns and sprinklers. Wherever you are, suddenly the animal, utterly different from your world, appears on the scene. For that moment, your worlds are one and the same, and you feel awe.

I hope you’ve been there. If not, here’s how.

Finding wildlife is about three basic principles:

1. Be Still. To see animals you must not move so much. If  you fidget like me, you’ll understand why this is number 1. Try simply sitting somewhere, anywhere, and . . .
2. Watch.  You might think this goes without saying, but really, when was the last time you watched something other than people or cars go by? Keep your eyes open to everything new and potentially interesting. Of course, you can help this along if you strive to . . .
3. Be Present. A certain wildlife biologist I know quite well is excellent at being in the moment, and I suspect that’s why he sees most everything before I do. This is also why I have to be obnoxious about it when I do see something first, of course.

I have had birds, rodents, and deer virtually ignore my presence. Once, while walking down a mysterious path at dusk, I came face to face with a porcupine doing the same. We stared at each other breathlessly for several minutes before he broke the tension and walked off. I will never forget the floating moment when we both felt the same fear and, if I can extend your imagination, the same exhilaration at the unexpected encounter.

Hey, it could be true. The point is, experiences are as magical and meaningful as you make them. Another time, in a perfect garden and also at dusk, a dragonfly hovered gently above my head. I’d like to think we were on a similarly Zen wavelength in that moment. I do know for certain that we shared the same beautiful garden on the same beautiful night.

What are your sudden nature encounters?

Summer Joys

I’m back! Is anyone out there?

Well, whether you are or you aren’t, I’m here and ready to share more Greening  Tree tidbits with you. Watch the blog for continued changes!

*~*

Summer is upon us, and the solstice will soon make it official. While I’m not a fan of high temps, I do love many of the pleasures that derive their significance from this fleeting season:

• An ice-cold drink on the patio.
• Exultant bird song from early in the morning until long after the sun retires.
• The lazy pace of everything – our western culture’s nod to seizing the season.
• Farmer’s markets loaded with brilliant colors and interesting shapes.
• The way the outdoors becomes our second home.

During the workweek, I take a moment to look out the window and smile upon the world outside. It will be ready to greet me at 5 o’clock, and I want to make sure I’m ready to greet it!

This week, why not:

• Try a new fruit.
• Stroll in your neighborhood.
• Notice an insect and the way it lives.
• Take an impromptu trip to a park – hike, play ball, picnic, and bask in this friendly season!

Autumn Pastimes

Image via Wikipedia

If you grew up in a temperate region, you had leaves falling at this time of year. Do you remember jumping in the leaves? Do you remember raking up the leaves into the biggest pile you could, only for the reward of jumping headlong into their earthy mystery?

Perhaps you didn’t have leaves, but you loved collecting pine cones.  You’d bring them inside and show an adult, as proud as if you had made them yourself. Or maybe  you played football every Thanksgiving, reveling in the crisp air and muddy ground.

Harvest time, no matter where you live, has magical powers. If you don’t believe this,  you may need to spend more time remembering how it used to be. Once you’ve done that, pick an activity and help encourage a child who may not know what wonders await outside, even as the days grow shorter.

Rake the leaves, even if you know you’ll have to do it again later. Glue some leaves together into beautiful placemats. Pick up the pine cones, and proudly display them on your Thanksgiving mantle. Head out for some football and return, out of breath, with rosy cheeks.

Seasonal pastimes are as close as your memories.

Why Backpacking?

Me, hiking PA's West Rim Trail

Two Sundays ago, I returned from a real-life adventure. There were glorious views and aching feet, midnight snow and evening rain, critter encounters and an injury. This adventure only took a few days and cost relatively little, but it plucked my husband and I out of our comfortable lives and immersed us more fully in our own survival. We went backpacking.

Some may ask why we would endure weather extremes, freeze-dried food, sleeping on the ground, and muscle pains. The truth is, there is a moment during every trip when even a seasoned backpacker asks themselves the same questions. However, the payoffs are legendary; just ask John Muir, hiker extraordinaire and father of the American park system. He exhorts us to “Keep close to Nature’s heart…and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.”

Yes, it is good to “break clear away,” to work for your vistas and waterfalls, and for your comfort at day’s end. To build a fire – especially when it is hard to do. To have your breath taken away by the sight of something no person could make. To realize that all you need to survive you can haul on your back, and that all the stuff back at home is just window-dressing. And to know that you are blessed with lungs, senses, and thoughts, and that all of these things cost nothing at all.

That is why I go backpacking.

Green 2.0: Seasonal Joys

I can’t fool you: we are talking about pleasures again. I just got tired of writing the word.

Although you’ve probably heard it before, it’s true as can be: in our industrialized society, it can be hard to feel at home in our natural surroundings, which are essentially the seasons. If we are unpracticed in the art of savoring each season’s joys, we may focus only on its sorrows. Spring is muddy; summer, hot; autumn gloomy; winter . . . well, you know all about that if you live north of Florida.

The poet Thoreau once said, “Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each.” So much of our struggle with nature – and I do include myself – is the feeling that we must be in control. That we must rage against the dying of the light, to quote another poet. What travelers tend to find so quaint about indigenous peoples is really their joyful resignation to the influences – good and otherwise – of their world. Natives know how to navigate nature and find the best in it because they live in it – and with it.

We can learn this. It must be a gentle courtship. Buy some of the season’s fruits at a farm stand. Make a recipe with seasonal ingredients (try About.com’s Local Foods). Or simply sit outside, in any weather, for just a few minutes. See how the light is different than three months ago.

What are your seasonal joys?

Green 2.0: Nature at Warp Speed

Perhaps you don’t move at warp speed, but grant me this: we move a lot nowadays. There are always things to do, some of our own creation. This can make it seemingly difficult to reconnect with nature. What’s a busy person to do?

Try some of these mini-activities on for size during your next road trip, or even as you jet about your day-to-day. Think of them as adult versions of “Eye Spy” – with a double-shot espresso.

• Something old. Check out a view you pass every day and challenge yourself to find something new about your same-old surroundings. Hey, when did that nest get there?
• Train window. As you commute on the light-rail or drive to work (use caution people), ponder what makes the landscape unique in all the world.
• A bird in the hand . . . Birds are literally everywhere. In fact, they may be the most accessible wildlife. Take a moment to watch any bird today. Bonus points if it’s a dirty, commonplace-looking one. Also bonus points if it’s a rare find – go look it up!
• Mud pies. You may need to swallow some pride and look both ways, but it’s worth it. Stoop or sit on the ground in your backyard (or somewhere secluded in a park) and dig a small hole. Be fascinated by dirt again, if only for a few moments. Are there any tiny creatures? If you do this in your front yard, I cannot guarantee you won’t get strange looks.

And finally . . .

• Just breathe. Every guru of every meditative, therapeutic art will tell you this because it’s the most simple healing magic anywhere. It can’t be beat. Stop where you are, with all of your bags, and take a few deep breaths. Look around and smile. Doesn’t that feel great?

Now, on your way!

Green 2.0: Cultivating Memories

Image via Wikipedia

We can re-write history. Of course, we cannot change what has happened in our lives, but we can cultivate the good by cherishing those memories and keeping their spirit alive. We can do this by seeking similar experiences.

Do you have a memory – perhaps related to your simplest pleasures – of a blissful or interesting nature experience? I use both words because if you don’t feel easily drawn to nature, you may not have had a blissful experience, but you surely had an interesting one along the way. You can transform even a somewhat negative experience – like being lost and scared in the woods – by focusing on the interesting aspects of it. Were there mysterious sounds? Intriguing smells? Did following your curiosity get you lost in the first place? Recapture what led you there.

Research shows that people who grow up to feel passionate about conserving nature tend to have had a transformative childhood experience outdoors. In other words, they had a moment of wonder and awe, of feeling impressed by the beauty, wholeness and vastness of the world. If you can dig into your past and remember a time you felt this, you can seek out these experiences again. If you never had a chance, go seek it now. Simply be outside, be open, and awe will find you.

I support you in your adventure!

Green 2.0: The Little Things

Quick – what’s your simplest guilty pleasure? When I say simplest, I’m trying to cut out the usual answers – celebrity gossip, reality TV, bubble baths (all of which I totally understand) – and get to the joys we take in the bounty of the earth.

I just enjoyed one of mine. After putting honey in my tea, I like to use the warm spoon to eat a dollop of it. During that blissful moment in which the honey lingers on my tongue, I often think about how the flavor differs depending on where the bees made it. This encourages me to find local honey, because in addition to supporting local farms, I want to know what local honey tastes like – what here tastes like.

You can use your simplest pleasures to awaken appreciation for your natural surroundings. Like the beach? Think about why – your answer will probably lead you to gratitude for the sound of rhythmic waves, the invigorating, briny smell and warm sand on your feet. Like having your evening tea or beer on the porch? You may not realize it yet, but you likely enjoy the reliable approach of evening, with its soothing sunset colors, insect sounds and cool breezes.

The experts increasingly find that gratitude extends our lives and reduces that silent killer: stress and unhappiness. Even if you haven’t been drawn to nature in your recent memory, all is not lost.  Picture the first warm, sunny morning of spring, snow melting everywhere and birds singing. Is that you, smiling?

Green 2.0: Finding the Beauty

Image via Wikipedia

Sometimes we do not find ourselves living in very natural places. Despite our location, however, there is surely beauty to be found nearby – we may just need a little help finding it. To that end, why not try some of these activities this weekend?

• Joy walk: Go on a walk looking only for natural things that make you smile. They may have been put there by people, such as a garden or planter full of flowers, but finding what gives you joy is the goal. Follow your senses and investigate!
• Special mission: Search for signs of life. This may involve close observation in unusual places, but small plants and animals (insects qualify for this) occupy most places on the planet. The resilience of a dandelion forcing its way through asphalt is just one example of the way nature can inspire our humanity.
• Balcony gardening: You can grow something wherever you live. Use a sturdy pot or other container (preferably with a few small holes in the bottom) to plant seeds from the supermarket on your windowsill, balcony, or rooftop space. Be creative with the container and the seeds – will you want herbs, vegetables, flowers or ferns? Read the instructions and nurture your piece of nature. Does it change over time? Does it attract any insects or birds?
• Try a new hobby: If you want to learn more about and find more nature, try checking out a library book on birding for beginners. Once you start, you’ll notice more birds – and other wild things – than ever before.

EcoCaching

Image via Wikipedia

That’s right, eco. This new type of geocaching highlights the features of a location to inspire conservation awareness among explorers. Each ecocache, or buried container located using a GPS device,  contains a description of the site’s importance and an object symbolic of the area. It may even contain instructions for an interactive, ec0-activity. This website, with amusing translation into English (“box made of glass because of rodent”), explains the basics.

It sounds like a great twist to an exciting hobby that’s growing all the time – an estimated 5 million people in the U.S. participate. To get started geocaching or to find locations near you, go to the clearinghouse website: Geochaching.com. And let me know what’s in the box, if you do.