There is tremendous scientific evidence that taking a walk in nature has a positive effect on our brain. It helps it rejuvenate. I have lived in nature for forty years and I’m glad to hear it. I’m also pleased that the medical field is teaching us how important it is to sleep. I hate to say, I told you so, but I knew back in the 80’s and 90’s that people were working too hard and pushing themselves too far. I remember seeing a new campaign at one of the big grocery chain stores. One day, all the checkers had big red buttons affixed to their shirts that read, Just Do It. One of the checkers wearing the button had been in my speech class in college and I knew her well enough to know that she did not appreciate having to wear that slogan. What does that even mean? Just do it? Even if it kills you, do it anyway? Even if it will harm someone else, do it anyway? Needless to say, the buttons didn’t last long.
With so much at stake, we must eat as best we can, get the sleep that we need and take those walks into nature. While you’re out there, lost in the tree canopy, keep an eye out for the acorns. Those acorns are a reminder that the earth continues to provide for the creatures that live at its roots. And even if the wind someday blows it over, animals will make homes in the holes and caves of the roots. Life regenerates. And as the scientific evidence shows, so do our minds when we walk in nature.
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns. Find it here:
http://www.amazon.com/Acorns-Eatem-How–Vegetarian-Cookbook/dp/1491288973
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