A Call To The Wild
Where do you go when you want to ‘leave it all behind’?
We live in a manufactured world, designed and built for our needs and desires. We have effortless access to shelter, food, entertainment – whatever we might need. For most of us, there are no day-to-day concerns for survival other than, perhaps, those desperate times when it is impossible to find a ripe avocado within walking distance.
The ease in which we move through our lives creates a dangerous possibility that we’ll lose touch with the natural world, and as such, the ability to clear our minds from day to day stresses. In fact, I know people who go through their daily lives - working, shopping, being entertained - without the nurturing breaths of fresh air.
While it certainly is Human Nature to take Mother Nature for granted, we must work to sustain a healthy relationship that feeds our body and mind. Not necessarily white-water rafting, camping on the edge of a glacier, or repelling off a sheer cliff, interaction can be as simple as a short walk in the woods to disengage from that which sidetracks us.
From my office window, I get a clear view of the Ramapo Mountains, in western Rockland County. One favorite hiking trail leads to the top of Kakiat Park. Though these days I rarely get to hike there, just seeing those hills triggers memories of past hikes, such as discovering yet-to-unfurl Fiddlehead Ferns and stumbling across a rabbit hole, over-flowing with babies. Simply recalling the sights and sounds of leaf-covered trails warms me.
Such fruitful remembrances usually satisfy me until I get back there. If impatience for a return grabs me before I can, I try to console myself with sour grapes, by conjuring itchy thoughts of mosquito bites and crawling spiders which makes the absence more tolerable.
We each fuse with nature in our own ways. Perhaps a drive in the country, taking in the spectacle of autumn leaf color change, or watching clouds while lying face-up under a canopy of trees. Even star-gazing.
With all the demands on our time, getting ‘out there’ can be challenging. Personally, and with friends, some prodding is often necessary to make it happen. A magnificent weekend day, or the promise of a muffin upon return, have sufficiently motivated me in the past. The one bit of advice I hear most often from people, though, is simply telling me to “Take a hike”.