Exposure to nature not only improves our mood and makes us feel better emotionally, but it also contributes to our physical wellbeing. You likely have fond memories of your childhood experiences in nature but somehow life just got in the way. It’s time to rebuild that connection. To venture beyond your garden or neighbourhood park for a deeper immersion.
The Germans have a great word, Erlebnisse, that loosely translates as:
The experiences, positive or negative, that we feel most deeply, and through which we truly live; not mere experiences, but Experiences.
That’s exactly it. The wilderness is not always easy, but that’s part of what makes it so meaningful and so special.
I’ve always loved camping. The at-least-a-day-away-from-the-car kind of camping. I remember backpacking with my family every summer in the 70s and 80s – carefully measuring the percentage of my 9-year-old bodyweight that I could place in my pack. To carry my share in the red canvas external frame backpack purchased from MEC when it was still called “The Co-op” and had a single list of membership numbers posted near the till.
We would hike through the spectacular coastal rainforest of the Pacific Rim National Park to camp for weeks on end on Long Beach at Schooner Cove. I remember the joy as my sister and I could first spot the ocean through the forest. The pure excitement of the adventure to come. Our tent was small for a family of four but outside our nylon home, the world was immense.
Everything seems more extreme in nature. The clapping of crashing waves and the cacophony of seabirds. The smells of rotting seaweed and salt-water-soaked wood smoke. The intense, unrelenting heat of a July sun or the torrential numbing rain of a downpour. Every day is truly lived. Endured. Survived. Enjoyed. Every sense is engaged. Every memory deeply imprinted.
While in the wild, unable to retreat, we deeply connect with our environment. We contemplate more. We feel more. We live more. An encounter with nature in the wild and off the beaten path brings resilience and gratitude that extends long after we return.
We don’t need vacations that disconnect us and put our lives on hold until we can attempt to manage them again. We desperately need erlebnisse. We need to seek the Experiences that fill us with emotion due to their extraordinary beauty and with a sense of accomplishment and belonging for our ability to thrive and enjoy them. Connecting with nature is not always easy, but that’s what makes it so incredibly worthwhile.
4 Responses
Love this. So true. Need more nature in my life.
Thanks for the comment, Michelle. Don’t we all 😊 🌲 ⛰ Hike with me sometime?
Great content! Keep up the good work!
Thank you so much for the kind encouragement. Much appreciated 😊