Everyday Canvas

Nature

Prompt: "Happiness flutters in the air whilst we rest among the breaths of nature." Kelly Sheaffer Write anything you want about this.

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Nature is a healer when we pay attention to it. Through its rhythms and myriad of forms, it breathes happiness into our souls. As it cheers and inspires our senses, it shifts our focus from our egos and lets us recognize that we are part of the universe. This may be why small children are more curious about and more connected to the universe.

One of my sons once asked me, “If the world is round and curved, how come it looks so flat?” I think in his question, lies the truth of the way we assess our presence. Life looks flat when we look at it from a diminished angle. In fact, when we rise above where we stand, the world curves around us as if to embrace everyone and everything.

When we go outdoors and open our senses to nature, we understand and appreciate it better. That discovery leads to the feelings of awe and contentment, and we may even appreciate our own simplistic lives. No wonder some healers and gurus encourage people to practice meditation outdoors and contemplate on nature by using their senses…

I think Sylvia Plath puts this into words the best in Bell Jar: “I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery—air, mountains, trees, people. I thought, "This is what it is to be happy.” I agree.