The Healing Power of Nature

 

Nature has an undeniable power to calm our minds and restore our spirits, and it can give us a firm foundation for the challenges that lie ahead. This time of year is perfect for slowing down and embracing what the natural world offers. Imagine waking up early, feeling the fresh air on your face as you greet a sunrise, the sky glowing with promise. Spending time in natural settings like green spaces, national parks, or even a small nearby park can help us to reconnect with ourselves, and establish a sense of peace in spite of what is happening in the world.

THE PEACE OF WILD THINGS

When despair for the world grows in me

and I wake in the night at the least sound

in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be, 

I go and lie down where the wood drake

rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.

I come into the peace of wild things 

who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief. 

I come into the presence of still water.

And I feel above me the day-blind stars

waiting with their light. For a time

I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

Wendell Berry