“I took a walk in the woods and came out taller than the trees.” – Henry David Thoreau, natural philosopher.
Nature’s therapy is more powerful than any drug. That’s why I emphasize “touching grass” daily. I go outside and immerse myself in nature and bask in the great outdoors.
It’s more than just a hobby. It’s philosophy in the truest sense.
I’ve always said that bad philosophy leads you to the armchair. Good philosophy leads you to your feet.
Living In Accordance With Nature
In order to recognize the beauty of nature, you have to focus on your role in it. You are not separate from nature. You are a part of it.
You are under the same stars as the fish and the frogs.
Zeno of Citium put it simply:
“All things are parts of one single system, which is called Nature; the individual life is good when it is in harmony with Nature.”
This view far predates the Stoics. It’s the basic understanding that underlies Christianity itself.
As it says in Genesis 1:31:
“And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.”
That includes you and I.
Since we are all made by the same Creator, we are all beautiful in His eyes.
Immersing yourself in life is the truest form of appreciation. Living in accordance with nature is being active in it because we are part of it.
This requires a type of intensity in living that few people learn until it’s too late.
I’m reminded of Ernest Hemmingway’s quote:
“Try to learn to breathe deeply, really to taste food when you eat, and when you sleep, really to sleep. Try as much as possible to be wholly alive with all your might, and when you laugh, laugh like hell. And when you get angry, get good and angry. Try to be alive. You will be dead soon enough.”
Living in accordance with nature is healthy. It’s natural. Do it intensely.
