Healing in Nature

A Creek Near the Iron Horse Trail.  Photo: Amanda Killen

Often, when in the city, I imagine what the landscape would look like without buildings and freeways and man made structures.  Here in Seattle, where the city seems to rest precariously and lightly on the hills and beside the lakes and water, that is relatively easy.  We live in an area that is abundant with the power of nature.  The beauty of this region is what draws many people to live in the Pacific Northwest.
There are few things as healing as nature.  Which is fortunate, since we live in a natural world.  Even made made structures originally, are sourced from nature.
Spending time hiking, in the forest, by a stream or walking on the beach can be one of the easiest and most enjoyable ways to quiet the mind, become present, feel grounded, connect with yourself and reduce stress.  Something about the quiet and being surrounded by trees, moss, with the sound of birds or a stream, or the incredible quiet of the wind.
For me personally, there is almost nothing I love more than the natural world and I believe we would have a healthier society and healthier people if we all spent more time connecting with nature.  There is something that nature simply does for the soul.  Sometimes it can be hard to be aware of if your life is busy and most of the time you are keeping track of your todo list.  But take a little time for yourself.  Take a little time to enjoy your natural environment.  You may just find your worries and thoughts melting away, if only for a moment.

The Power of Vulnerability

Finding the Natural Rhythm

Most of us move too fast.  There are many, many factors in our lives in modern society which compel us to move faster than what is healthy for us.  We end up compromising our well being, and the authentic speed and rhythm inherent in our bodies and spirits because we feel a scarcity of time and money and are for the most part, are driven to work to earn a certain amount of money within what we perceive as a very limited amount of time.
When I talk about health, I'm not referring to measurements on a scale, blood pressure, cholesterol, or anything that can be quantified.  Health is synonymous with quality of life.  In my own experience, I've found there's almost nothing that diminishes quality of life faster than moving too fast.  When we move too fast, we do not allow the time to absorb the things which would fulfill us.  We might know we are making a living and we might be getting everything done on our to do lists, but it can create a feeling of emptiness when our systems do not have time to take in what we really need.
And I think we need the beauty of nature.  I think we need authentic contact with other human beings.  I think we need to live the true of expression of what we feel called to give in this world to be truly healthy.  I think these factors are more important in our health than other quantified measurements.
If we move too fast, we miss these things.
There is a natural rhythm and living dynamic to our systems.  When we feel exhausted, that's usually our systems telling us we need rest.  When we feel restless, its the same system telling us we need movement of some kind.  When we are moving at a speed where we can feel, we can respond to the feedback of our bodies in a way that feeds us and keeps us in balance.  "What is needed now?" is always the question.  The answer is not always the picture of what we think should be.  The good news is, that means life gives us a lot of surprises.
Being healthy is living in that dynamic where we can draw on the intelligence and resources available to us in the moment to fulfil the needs our systems tell us are wanting and knowing that there is no final fulfillment of that dynamic, but a constant flow of needs, the seeking to fulfil and the fulfillment which creates the circumstances for a new need.
When that dynamic can move freely, we are in life.

Image from: net_efekt