Earth Days gets me thinking about how vital it is for me to be outside enjoying my surroundings. It is part of what sustains, rejuvenates and calms me and that was especially true in the months following my divorce.
I’ve lived in Colorado for almost nine years and feel well grounded in my small town of Niwot. The summers get too hot for my English body but the winters, believe it or not are pretty mild and the sun invariable shines. Niwot is in the front-range foothills – within two minutes walk of my front door, I’m on the Niwot Loop with a panoramic view of the mountains.
I try to walk the Loop at least twice a week. In winter, that’s not always possible but with my yaktraxs I can walk on snow and ice. If it’s cold, I wait until mid-day when it’s warmed up a bit. In summer, the heat usually means I’m walking in the evening or early morning.
I like to walk east first because then when I’m on the return section, I’m facing west and looking at the mountains. The vista changes constantly – some days the mountains are towering, dominating, majestic. Other days, they’re invisible behind thick clouds and fog. Some days, the skies remind of the Renaissance paintings with shafts of light shining from the heavens on a scene below. Some times the mountains look very green, other times they’re pink. A few years ago, I was having the concrete floor in my basement “painted” and the contractor asked me what color I wanted. I said,”Pink, like the mountains are, in the morning when the sun first hits them.” He smiled, “I know exactly what you mean.”
When I take in the mountains, the weight from my shoulders is lifted, I stand taller, I breathe deeper, my mind clears and my brain calms. It helps me balance my life, keeping competing responsibilities in perspective. I may get more of a workout on my elliptical but I never feel as at one with myself after that. This is my meditation – my walking meditation.
In my Honoring these women part 2 post I recognized Page Lambert and in particular the lesson she taught me about gaining back a sense of belonging and feeling rooted after divorce. It’s “learning to listen to the land and how it speaks to you,” Page told me. “It can be as simple as walking to the closest open space you can find and just sitting and listening and observing and repeating that. Going to that same place day after day so you get a sense of what it’s like at dusk or dawn.” And the land does speak to me – there are days when it calls to me and I know I just have to be outside to breathe it all in. I know now too not to ignore those calls.
My question to you is how does nature help to sustain you? Do you have a favorite activity that revitalizes you? Do you have a quiet contemplative place? Is there a park or a beach that calls to you?
Mandy, what an honor to be included as one of "the women" from whom you've gleaned some helpful life advice. I, too, am indebted to so many women who have shared life lessons and provided support during difficult transitions. And equally, have been able to share my successes and joys with many women as well. We truly can be each other's greatest resources, like beautiful pieces of fruit offering each other sustenance. The land, for me, is like the tree–firmly rooted to the eternal, firmly grounded in core values to which I can return again and again whenever my life feels imbalanced.
Hi Page, I truly am indebted to you – I appreciate my walks so much more since our conversation and every now and then, I hear your voice drawing my wandering attention back to the beauty around me. 🙂
How I take advantage of the great outdoors?
i love being outside. One of the things that I do every year for at least 2 weeks is go camping in places that have no electricity, no cell phone coverage, no internet — the wilderness basically. We have our camping gear, a canoe, hammocks, a bag of books and food of course. There was only my partner, the trees, the wind and the stars. It was heaven for me. It is one of the things that makes me sad about my divorce, I need a new buddy to go camping with.
I have moved to a community, White Rock, where the ocean is a 20 min walk and a 5 min drive down the hill. I love to run along the boardwalk with all the other people in the community who are out for their morning walk or run. The majesty of Mount Baker is in th east and the mountains on Vancouver Island are in the south west. I work on quieting my mind as I run and just breathing in the beauty of the ocean, the mountains and the birds.
Today I decide to see how many people I could say "good morning" to on my run. A 101 apparently. I decided that I wanted to connect with people. One of the biggest fears about divorce is being alone. When I looked people in th eye and said "good morning", it was impossible to be alone. I was connect with people and with nature.
Love and Hugs,
Jacque
I grew up quite close to the sea and spent 15 years in Connecticut on the coast, so I do miss it here in Colorado. I, too, like saying hello to people when I'm on my walk. I've not come anywhere close to 100 people – 10 would be a really good day. Most of the time, they give me a big friendly hello back. Sometimes I'm not heard. Can't say I miss the camping – always seemed like a lot of work 🙂
Sitting or lying on the beach with my toes digging into the sand instantly destresses me. It is so relaxing to listen to the waves, seagulls and people having fun in the background.
Fortunately, we live on the coast (well 20 miles away) so I can do this without having to go on vacation.
I know what you mean about the waves …
I joined your Blogfrog community and became a facebook fan. D
For me, anytime I am around green, growing things, I am calmer. Even in the midst of a concrete jungle, if I spy a little plant crowing up through the cracks in the sidewalk, it makes me happy.
I became a fan on Facebook!
I am energized by being anywhere with my children, family and friends. I love going to the beach, playing in the park, or just playing basketball in the backyard. Combination of being outdoors & sharing time with someone special to me sustains me.