Choose Your Nature Adventure
(our) nature is everywhere
One of the main purposes of reflective arts is to build a relationship between with world within us and the world around us. As such, here’s some ideas about finding (our) nature all around:
(our) Nature is Everywhere
In the cracks. Out of the sidewalks. On our countertops. In our water bottles. On our plates. Into our bodies. Out of our bottoms, and with every avoidant bathroom breath there is evidence: we are surrounded by and part of life. With reflective arts, love can be found from the dirt to the sky; when we open our eyes and give it our time, (our) nature is here, right by our side.
In the creative adventures of This Wonderful World, the aim is to discover (our) nature at home (and all the places that we regularly roam):
so that we may know, each and every day, that nature’s here for us, in every way
so that we may feel, with every step, how we belong and how we connect.
With just our attention and loving wonder, This Wonderful World gets better and better.
To that end, there’s two recommended routes for getting to know (our) nature whole new way: Neighborhood Nature and Wild Watershed. Which one you choose will depend on how far you want to travel, and what you have access to.
Choose Your Nature Adventure :
Neighborhood Nature
I grew up thinking that nature was some place far away from the concrete sidewalks and foundations that I called home. While it is true that modern human habitat does makes it harder for (our) nature to thrive as a whole, (our) nature has proven to be miraculously resilient, sending its hardest hitters into the our towns and cities: cockroaches, rats and dandelion wishing, not to mention the flowers and trees that we plant on purpose in our little islands of life, our beautiful gardens. The bees. The birds. The spiders and critters, all here to remind us of how we’re part of nature.
Though there is something special about being in places that have less-disturbed ecosystems (in the protected parks where there’s less development), I have found great meaning in being able to see the nature that is always in front of me. To find (our) nature in everything has given me a great sense of home and belonging.
For that reason, in the adventure of (our) Neighborhood Nature, you need not go further than the street that you live on: a backyard, a front yard, a neighbor's yard, a park, a crack in the sidewalk -right where you are! With the right eyes to see, (our) nature is free. There's no travel time. It doesn’t cost a penny. Whether it’s out your front door, or around the places you work, (our) nature lurks in every nook and every cranny, where life is just waiting to be discovered. Check out more about Urban Ecosystems (here) and Suburban Wildlife (here).
Wild Watershed
Everyone on Earth is part of a watershed: the area of land that drains into our creeks, rivers, aquifers, and lakes. Even folks in deserts are part of a watershed (where most of the water flows underground or in seasonal streams). Here’s how it works:
When a drop of water falls inside the watershed, it flows toward the main body of water. It can do this in one of two ways: by soaking into the ground, or by running off the landscape…If the water soaks into the ground, it becomes part of the groundwater supply, which eventually connects with the surface water [such as lakes and rivers]…But if the water can’t soak into the ground, it will move toward the lowest point in the landscape…Imagine a raindrop falling anywhere inside that watershed; no matter where it lands, it will eventually find its way to the main body of water at the bottom.1
As big rivers are always made up of smaller rivers, big watersheds are always composed of smaller watersheds (called subwatersheds) that drain into them. With that in mind, we are each part of multiple watersheds: the big-river one and the littler ones.
For the adventures in (our) Wild Watershed, you’ll get to know a body of water near you, which can be a creek, river, pond, lake, marsh, or ocean. You may have to travel a little bit to get there, but the aim is to stay as close to home as possible2. As the areas around water tend to have greater biodiversity, spending time near a water source will help you get to know the wild ecosystem of your home habitat, and of (our) nature. Find the body of water nearest to you and find out what rivers and lakes it’s connected to. For an extra dose of meaning and connection, find out where your drinking water comes from, and go to a place that’s connected to the watershed that supplies your water source.
Optional: Choose a Sit-Spot:
A sit-spot is a place that you return to for ongoing observation. By staying within a regular zone, the relationships we form with (our) nature deepen. Observation of (our) nature is especially meaningful when witnessing each other over time: How do we respond to different circumstances? What new vulnerabilities are revealed? What new strengths are discovered? What new support can we offer each other? As (our) nature is ever-changing and growing, no one place ever stays the same; there’s something new to be discovered every single day. Just as friends ripen through the seasons, time in a sit-spot always sweetens.
Let’s Do It, Together 💗
https://www.mwmo.org/learn/watershed-and-stormwater-basics/what-is-a-watershed/#:~:text=Simply%20put%2C%20a%20watershed%20is,how%20a%20typical%20watershed%20works.
For those who live in the continental United States, here’s a really awesome interactive map of bodies of water for you to find what’s closest to you, and what’s it connected to: https://webapps.usgs.gov/streamer/