To those that offer their sincere attention and intention, Nature has a way of offering its liberating lessons. These are three lesson that can transform the way we feel and act in our lives.
- Interdependence. We don’t have to look far into nature to see that all parts are connected to one another, balance one another, and eventually become one another. This couldn’t be more true than the relationship between our lungs and the trees, exchanging life-giving gases on a moment to moment basis. These myriad examples remind us that we too are part of this intricate web of life, that we have a home amidst the natural world, and that we can never be alone. This is a crucial reminder in our society and our minds so often rife with isolation, division, and loneliness, and one that can bring us lasting ease and contentment.
- Change. From morning to night, season to season, and year to year, nature teaches us about the cycles of life. From the passing of weather to the life and death of plants and animals, nature teaches us about the natural flow of change. Seeing this clearly, we can come into greater acceptance of the natural unfolding of our own lives, from birth to adolescence to maturity and to death. We can allow the unresolved or uncomfortable things in our life or in our minds greater acceptance and spaciousness, knowing that all things inevitably change.
- Contentment (stillness/silence/spaciousness). One of nature’s most subtle yet powerful lessons is in the presence of the wild things themselves – the way the trees hold themselves, the expanse of the big open sky, the swift and mindful movements of the animal world. Indeed, in it’s very way of being, nature transmits it’s silent, still, and spacious presence to us as a constant example, reminding us that that same presence lives within us, as we too are part of that same nature. This understanding can give us access to a space of calm and contentment even amidst the busyness and pressure of daily life – a priceless gift.