Nature at Home
- jmemka
- May 25, 2017
- 4 min read
This week we focused our readings on the interconnections with nature, how we are connected, why it matters, and ways to raise our awareness of what we have and its importance in our lives.
As always, I take these opportunities to reflect on our own habits and rituals. Growing up as a young boy I was very fortunate to not only have the opportunity to explore outside but it was encouraged. Our family home was on the fringe of some natural prairie that had yet to be developed. We would spend hours out in the fields and bushes building forts, riding our bikes on the trails, catching frogs, and really just being wild. On the weekends and during summer holidays we spent our time at the family cottage. While I was given guidelines, I did have a tremendous amount of freedom to explore with friends and cousins. Beach combing, hiking, trail riding, mushroom picking with our grandparents were were never ending activities. As I got older my dad would often ask me if I was lost when I returned home. Most mornings I would get up early and disappear for the day, returning home at some point when I was hungry (it was usually after supper had been cleaned up and put away). I would laugh and tell my parents about my adventures.
Something really resonated with me when watching the videos and completing the readings.
"I was a free-range kid. I grew up in an era, and place, where my brothers and sisters and I would head out of the house to play with friends, explore the woods..." (O'Brien, 2016).
Reading the first few lines of Chapter 8 in Education for Sustainable Happiness and Well-Being really peaked my interest. All of the memories of growing up rushed back and created a flood of overwhelmingly positive emotion. As I continued to read I became more and more aware of how lucky I was. There are two aspects of my experience that clearly defined what took place. I was a child of the 80's, mass media hadn't fully scared the pants on parents yet, and I had parents that encourage me to go outside and explore. Some of my friends and I joke that we were never called back in for lunch and if we happened to step into the house at some point it was similar to being interrogated by the KGB. Clearly we were "loved" most when we were outside.
The readings and videos also show and discuss the shift with kids and to a certain extent society today. "We" spend less time outside connecting with nature and our natural selves.
This brought me to my own observations of the decisions we have made and how nature played a role in the process.
I have included some pictures (somewhat chronologically) below that gives a fairly accurate summary of us. The first picture is our property 4 summers ago. A bare piece of retired farm land with nothing but weeds to show.
Wendy and I decided to get out of the city and build in a small community that offered us some additional space, fresh air, and a more natural environment outside our door. Granted, we had access to my families cottage and Wendy's parents homes in Kenora, Ont. (beautiful lake front properties) but they required effort and scheduling to make it work. We wanted to relax and keep it as simple as possible.
We have been making a effort from day one with the kids to keep them outside as much as possible (they sleep better with all the fresh air which improves our well-being and happiness) and include them in our routines and chores.
From cutting the grass, to planting trees, and working in the garden. Its not always pretty or even fun, but it does get better overtime we go out. We are making our family connection with nature normal. Yes, sometimes someone eats mud or pick a pumpkin a little early but what can you say.
We dress for the weather and plant to attract wildlife. As you can see by the photos, we have been able to experience more in 4 years in our yard that we would have in ten years in the city.
From a sustainably/consumerism standpoint, I often wonder about our choice to move and build a new house in the middle of the prairies. In my own defence, I hadn't started the coursework in sustainability yet and my awareness was limited in comparison to what it is now. There is a good chance there is a slight bit of guilt. However, it fades fairly fast.
We have created something we love and share with our family and friends. We have planted nearly 500 trees, many flowers, and various plants that provide habitat for wildlife that would just pass by if it was still a bare field. Having a yard and a neighbourhood that we can explore, learn, and grow in is truly priceless. Our decision has given us the opportunity to create dialogue with our kids about nature, wildlife, and framing. We are able to visit some small farms that are close by with the addition of our side by side (the really funs stuff is too far to walk to) and see the animals and equipment. The kids are at the right age (Nolan mostly, but Avery is not far behind) to ask a million questions about everything and Avery never gets tired of going to see the horses.
Has consumerism played a role in this opportunity? Yes, is it worth it? I think I have to say yes. We don't have to plan, organize, or travel to be surrounded by nature and be able to enjoy the peacefulness that brings. We are free of the city noise, the feeling of always being rushed, and the boredom that comes with being restricted by the confines of the urban setting.
Enjoy the photos, Wendy is only in one of them as she operates the camera most of the time. We split the wildlife shots, the flowers, bugs, and lightening are mine.
Spend some time in your yard to see what you can find.
