Nature Connection: Being Grateful For Nature

It’s a rare human being that can’t find solace in nature, whether that is a stolen moment on a woodland path, a morning at the beach or an afternoon meandering through a field. 

Some of us try to get outside every day, even in questionable weather. We find comfort in the sounds, smells, and of course sights we encounter. We also appreciate the gentle surprises along the way: a pair of fox kits tumbling around across the marsh, a bird sitting silently on a nest, a crab running sideways, its tiny claws opening and closing in defiance.

Nature is many things, encompassing a broad variety of life forms, weather and landscape. She is wild and untamed, quiet and compelling, juicy or dry, large or small, a book we’ve barely begun to open, never mind read. We love the beauty but are repelled by the ugly, and there’s plenty of ugly in nature, too. Watching one animal rip another from stem to stern can be quite jarring, but are we really that different? We may buy our meat, fish and poultry in pristine packages, but someone somewhere had to do the deathly dirty work.

If we’re honest, we should live in the constant realization that we, too, are part of nature, not separate from it. The way we live today seems a regrettable denial of this simple fact. We are living attached to screens that tell us fake stories and show us overly edited pictures, and we are ignoring the magnificence just outside our doors. Even small children are spending their time indoors in artificial lighting, looking at the world through a tiny piece of plastic. This may be a reality of the time, but it is far from the reality of the living, breathing world.

As we approach a celebration of thankfulness, remembering our place in that world humbly and with a promise to be of service may be a fitting way to show our gratitude. We could stop using poisons to kill off insects and rats and other things that make us a little squirmy. We could plant flowers and trees that nurture rather than decorate. We could learn to live seasonally instead of importing and transporting food from faraway places at great environmental and human cost. We could learn to use sustainable energy, share transportation and housing needs, and make sure all the children get fed and taken care of. We could stop believing that acquiring and hoarding goods, food and trinkets determines our self worth.

Imagine, if you can, a world in which spending time outdoors was more important than watching a sports game on television. Imagine a world where people really shared and took care of each other and the land they were stewards of. Imagine, if you can, a world where the life of an ant, tiger, heron and whale was as important as our own. Add some trees and fresh water to that thought, as our very survival depends on them.

Here on Cape Cod, many of us are acutely aware of the importance of nature. We live close to the sea, many of us earn our living in relation to the water, sand, fish and unique wildlife and plants that live here with us. We can smell salt in the air when we step out of our door, and the wind reminds us constantly that we live on a fragile spit of land. The tides move in and out with no thought of us whatsoever. Some days they flood busy roads, closing them down temporarily, while on others they stay on the beach.

We humans have spent much of our history destroying and fighting with nature. Sometimes it was necessary for survival, but these days the wars against nature are far bigger and more efficient than ever before. Nature is stressed. So are we. Imagine if we accepted the thought that these things were related. What would we do to help calm things down?

For one thing, we could be grateful for the bounty that nature has bestowed upon us. We could be grateful for the ways in which nature lets us breathe, drink, eat and find shelter. Without even one of these gifts, we would be at great peril as a society, and if you read the news, you know we get closer to losing at least some of these each year that we pretend we are more powerful than nature. 

It is true we have reached a population mass that is quickly overwhelming nature’s ability to recover and revive. Perhaps we could be thankful that there are those working diligently to correct these imbalances. Perhaps we could be on the side of nature when we are having conversations with friends and family, gently helping them to see the dangers in beating Old Mother Nature to death. The myth that nature will always overcome is a dangerous one in today’s world. Lighting a match to it may be a great way to show our gratitude.

In our daily lives we can show our thankfulness to nature in small, simple ways. We can grow plants that are native, replacing the exotics our parents and garden centers convinced us were better. We can stop using poisons in our yards and especially in our homes. We are eating, drinking, and wearing plastic. We can try to do better and stop buying anything wrapped or packaged in plastic. It’s simple and easy to make our own cleaning solutions so there’s no need to support the businesses that are poisoning our lands and waters. We can wear our clothes longer, use our tools and pans and dishes until they wear out, and stop buying cheap decorations for holidays and events that end up in the trash after one use.

As our thoughts turn to a season that celebrates thankfulness and giving, perhaps we can slow down and open the back door and thank nature for all that she gives us so freely.