{"id":15610,"date":"2019-12-12T08:05:30","date_gmt":"2019-12-12T08:05:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.awakeinthewild.com\/naturejournal\/this-is-an-article\/"},"modified":"2019-12-12T08:05:30","modified_gmt":"2019-12-12T08:05:30","slug":"wake-up-to-the-wild","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.awakeinthewild.org\/library\/wake-up-to-the-wild\/","title":{"rendered":"Wake Up to the Wild"},"content":{"rendered":"

By: Mark Coleman ~\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

It has been a long day at my desk, staring at a computer;\u00a0my brain cells feel wrung dry with too much cogitation.\u00a0Late afternoon, the fog has lifted on the hilltops above\u00a0my house and I decide to venture out on a hike to clear\u00a0my head and connect with what I love most: this pulsing\u00a0earth.<\/p>\n

As I start out on one my favorite trails, it takes a while for\u00a0my senses to open up, but soon I feel embraced into a\u00a0luminous world, welcomed by innumerable shades of\u00a0green, tall grasses shimmering, trees swaying in the\u00a0breeze, and shafts of sunlight peering through the thick\u00a0canopy. Below me, a family of quail dart in and out of the\u00a0bushes.<\/p>\n

As I crest the hill, I feel the invigoration of the cool wind,\u00a0blown in fresh from the Pacific. I inhale deeply and smell\u00a0the bite of the salty ocean air, which feels like a\u00a0homecoming, familiar and welcoming. It seems to blow\u00a0the dullness from my mind, and I sense how nature\u00a0invites us to connect and feel our way into a larger sense\u00a0of self.<\/p>\n

We tend to think of consciousness as skin bound, brain\u00a0tethered. However, in nature we can sense something\u00a0vaster\u2014and that something larger senses us. And from\u00a0here our perception and understanding transforms: We\u00a0start to think from this bigger perspective.<\/p>\n

Mindful Awareness\u00a0in Nature<\/p>\n

For over 15 years, I have led Awake in the Wild retreats in\u00a0places such as the islands in the Sea of Cortez in Baja,\u00a0Mexico, the Sierra Nevada mountains in California, and\u00a0the red rock canyons in Arizona. Participants immerse\u00a0themselves in the beauty of wilderness for a week of\u00a0silence and meditation and become transformed by the\u00a0process. Through the portal of mindful awareness, they\u00a0are developing an intimate connection with the natural\u00a0world that is both sublime and insightful. They come to\u00a0sense how embedded they are within the fabric of life\u00a0and its ecosystems.<\/p>\n

I teach my nature-based meditation work, in part,\u00a0because we have lost the art and ability to know how to\u00a0be in nature. We are mostly busy doing nature. We are\u00a0conquering the mountains, beating our best time on a\u00a0run, chatting with friends on a walk, listening to music\u00a0on headphones, or simply spaced out, daydreaming or\u00a0lost in thought.<\/p>\n

Although I believe any time in the outdoors
\nis time well spent, what we do with our mind while we\u00a0are outside is significant. With mindfulness training, we\u00a0learn that in any moment we can shift attention from the\u00a0stress-inducing thought realms\u2014the brain\u2019s default\u00a0mode network\u2014into the visceral present. We can attune\u00a0to our senses and see how they support present-moment\u00a0awareness. We realize the body and its sensory nature\u00a0are always present. By practicing outside, we discover\u00a0how nature constantly allures our awareness to its\u00a0beauty, complexity, diversity, and simple miracles. Or\u00a0we can discover what Wendell Berry notes in his poem\u00a0\u201cThe Peace of Wild Things\u201d as he steps outdoors: \u201cFor a\u00a0time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nature\u2019s Invitation<\/p>\n

Nature also provides innumerable counterpoints to\u00a0stress. For our cramped, pressured, cubicle lives, we can\u00a0feel a magnificent sense of space as we behold the\u00a0boundlessness of the night sky or the vastness of the\u00a0ocean. For our senses\u2014dulled by screens and monotone\u00a0offices\u2014we can drink in a thousand colors of the pebbles\u00a0and sands at the beach or shades of green as we walk in\u00a0the woods.<\/p>\n

For the pervasive anxiety and stress that runs through\u00a0our nervous system, we can access the tranquility of\u00a0trees, streams, and wildflower meadows. We can attune\u00a0to the gentle deer who embody a grace and dignity as\u00a0they move through a landscape. For our heart made\u00a0heavy by sadness and grief, we can be touched and\u00a0comforted by the simple joys of bluebells blooming in\u00a0woodlands, the fleeting hummingbird as it floats by, or\u00a0the billowing clouds lit up at sunset.<\/p>\n

Nature\u2019s teaching also provides a perspective that we all\u00a0too easily forget. As we watch scarlet maple leaves drop\u00a0in the fall, it reminds us of the importance of letting go,\u00a0of release. Walking in a woodland in the dead of winter,\u00a0we behold the natural rhythms of dormancy, and\u00a0remember there are seasons of flourishing and times to\u00a0rest and rejuvenate. Seeing fields of once-golden blooms\u00a0of sunflowers now withering in autumn, we remember\u00a0that beauty and joy also have their seasons, their ebb\u00a0and flow.<\/p>\n

Nature always invites our attention and offers so much to\u00a0our depleted hearts and minds. The question now is: Will\u00a0we accept the invitation? What\u2019s at stake if we don\u2019t is\u00a0not just our personal well-being. Our collective health\u2014and perhaps even the survival of our entire species\u2014seems to hang in the balance.<\/p>\n

Feeling the\u00a0Reality of Change<\/p>\n

As I continue my hike along the crest of the hill, I\u00a0suddenly realize the view is not the crystal clarity I have\u00a0come to expect. There is a haze in the valleys below,\u00a0blurring boundaries and obscuring the horizon. I begin\u00a0to smell an acrid smoke that strangely blows in from the\u00a0ocean. The smoke comes from the raging fires further\u00a0north, burning in the Pacific Northwest and British\u00a0Columbia. Although originating more than a thousand\u00a0miles away, these plumes, carried by Pacific thermals,\u00a0blow into California. It is the all-too-constant reminder\u00a0that not all is well in the world, however beautiful the\u00a0nature that surrounds me.<\/p>\n

Today, because of climate crisis and changing ecology,\u00a0the sense of finding nature as source of nourishment is\u00a0changing. We now live in an era where the impacts of\u00a0global warming\u2014unprecedented forest fires, species\u00a0extinction, coral reef deaths\u2014are impossible to ignore.\u00a0Our very experience of nature is tinged, if not marred, by\u00a0these looming realities.<\/p>\n

I have hiked in three mountain ranges in 2018: in the\u00a0Rockies, the Sierra Nevada, and the Alps. In each place I\u00a0walked, visibility was affected by a smoky haze from\u00a0nearby or distant forest fires. In the same year, California\u00a0witnessed two utterly tragic fires. One, the Camp Fire,\u00a0incinerated the entire town of Paradise, destroying up to\u00a018,000 homes, forcing more than 52,000 people into\u00a0some phase of homelessness. Simultaneously, the\u00a0Woolsey fire, near Malibu, ravaged hillsides and homes\u00a0alike. The Camp Fire spewed smoke that stretched for\u00a0hundreds of miles up and down California, blanketing\u00a0entire cities with toxic smoke. It was described as the\u00a0hottest and fastest moving fire in history. The intensity\u00a0fueled by the drought conditions were a direct result of\u00a0climate change.<\/p>\n

Similarly, friends who like to snorkel and dive lament the\u00a0diminishing coral reefs. Alpine climbers witness the high\u00a0mountain glaciers disappearing year after year. Oceans\u00a0that were once teeming with fish are now depleted. The\u00a0remaining fish drift in gigantic garbage patches, some as\u00a0large as the state of Texas.<\/p>\n

Our grief and pain about such things is harder to push\u00a0aside. The results of the climate crisis are mounting,\u00a0becoming an enervating presence where once we drew\u00a0pure pleasure and deep replenishment. Instead of\u00a0relishing the majestic trees, abundant wildflowers, or\u00a0breathtaking views, we confront drought conditions,\u00a0flooding, or the smoky haze of distant forest fires. Our\u00a0heart may feel heavy and weary or helpless at the scope\u00a0of the problem.<\/p>\n

The Australian eco-psychologist Glenn Albrecht coined a\u00a0new term for this: solastalgia. It is a part of an emerging\u00a0lexicon in the mental health field that endeavors to\u00a0address the distress and anxiety that occurs in relation to\u00a0the ecological crisis. Solastalgia, composed of two Greek\u00a0words, solacium (comfort) and algia (pain), refers to the\u00a0distress caused by environmental damage and speaks to\u00a0the grief, sadness, and despair that arises in response to\u00a0the current environmental devastation. Instead of joy\u00a0there is a hopelessness, a knowing that what is loved is\u00a0now under threat.<\/p>\n

People feel solastalgia in response to mountaintop\u00a0mining from the Blue Ridge Mountains to Western\u00a0Australia. It is felt when one sees the vast forests in the\u00a0West scorched by fires. It is stirred when there are mass\u00a0beachings of dolphins or whales or when blooming red\u00a0tides in Florida stifle marine life. Sailors feel it when\u00a0drifting past islands of plastic in the Pacific. Farmers\u00a0know it in their bones when droughts crush their wheat\u00a0harvests.<\/p>\n

When I recently came across this term, it articulated\u00a0something I\u2019ve felt for some time. It speaks to my\u00a0changing experience in nature. In the past, nature had\u00a0always been an unending source of nourishment, joy,\u00a0wonder, and love. Now it is often tinged with sadness,\u00a0grief, or loss at what is happening to species, habitat,\u00a0oceans, and rivers. It is now impossible to ignore. What\u00a0does this mean for countless people who have gone to\u00a0the woods for refuge and resilience? What are the dire\u00a0consequences for vulnerable peoples and species the\u00a0world over?<\/p>\n

Of course, I am also aware this grief is not new.\u00a0Indigenous cultures and First Nations \u00a0peoples have felt it\u00a0for centuries. They have and continue to witness\u00a0ecological devastation of their homelands through land\u00a0confiscation, drilling, mining, deforestation, and the\u00a0monocrops of agribusiness. They perhaps are more\u00a0vulnerable to the consequences of climate change,\u00a0whether that be declining fish stocks, melting ice in the\u00a0Arctic, or changing migration patterns. Our current tears\u00a0are part of a river of tears that has been flowing for a\u00a0long time.<\/p>\n

Practice with Paradox<\/p>\n

For me, as for any nature-loving meditator, this presents\u00a0a challenging dilemma. How do we continue to open our\u00a0hearts to the beauty of the natural world when doing so\u00a0means we also feel the deep pain of losing what we love?
\nAs I sit by the ocean, I can revel in the silky surface of the\u00a0water, the light catching the crest of waves, and be\u00a0mesmerized by its restless beauty and vast power. Yet I\u00a0also can\u2019t help thinking of the creatures that lie within it:\u00a0the diminishing shoals of tuna and dwindling populations\u00a0of porpoises.<\/p>\n

Whenever my heart feels torn in this way, I remember\u00a0that where we habitually place our heart and mind\u00a0becomes our natural inclination. What we focus on\u00a0determines to some degree our sense of well-being. We\u00a0can\u2019t ignore the ecological crisis. We are here because\u00a0society has refused to look squarely at this complex\u00a0problem. However, does it serve the greater good to\u00a0dwell only on the catalog of data about climate change?\u00a0Such single-pointed focus can lead to despair,\u00a0hopelessness, and worse.<\/p>\n

On my walk I can dwell on the smoke, the acrid smell, the\u00a0diminished visibility, and the destruction those fires\u00a0bring. Or I can shift my attention to what is not burning\u00a0up. To the Indian paintbrush flowers at my feet on my\u00a0walk, or to the wave of pelicans who fly in exquisite\u00a0formation along the coast. I can take in the elegant trees\u00a0that reach their limbs skyward and the beautiful\u00a0eucalyptus bark that peels like skin, while their leaves\u00a0cast a dreamy, shadowy light upon the lush undergrowth.
\nMindfulness teachings point us to meet the present\u00a0moment as it is: We behold both the beauty of nature and\u00a0the devastation that is occurring. We see the folly of\u00a0overly romanticizing the past or drowning in doomsday\u00a0scenarios of what\u2019s to come. We hold predictions about\u00a0the future lightly, however certain they\u2019ll appear, as we\u00a0can never know for sure what may unfold.<\/p>\n

In learning the power of inclining our mind, we can also\u00a0turn our attention to the tremendous number of\u00a0constructive solutions that millions of people around the\u00a0planet are working on. Organizations around the world\u00a0are figuring out how to remove plastics from the ocean,\u00a0draw carbon from the air, restore habitat for tigers in\u00a0Nepal, and clean up the Ganges river. The list of\u00a0businesses, municipalities, and nonprofits crafting\u00a0creative solutions to the climate crisis is vast and\u00a0increases every day.<\/p>\n

These times require our mindfulness practice to hold a\u00a0wide view. It asks that we hold the harsh reality of the\u00a0eco-crisis, the beauty of what is still here and thriving,\u00a0and simultaneously the uprising of ordinary people\u00a0working all over the planet to steward, protect, and\u00a0preserve the earth in sustainable ways. I have walked\u00a0through scorched forests. I can look at the blackened\u00a0trunks and feel a tender grief. And I can also focus on the\u00a0emerald green shoots that rise out of the ashes. Both are\u00a0true. Both demand our attention.<\/p>\n

To be awake today is to learn how to hold paradox in\u00a0your mind and to dwell in ambiguity. Indeed, the\u00a0question I hear from many people is: How do we hold the\u00a0pain of the earth at this time? My answer is simply to\u00a0grieve. To let yourself feel the depth of the pain and let\u00a0the tears flow. Allowing grief to move through allows\u00a0movement and a responsiveness to rise out of those\u00a0tear-stained ashes. It helps melt the frozen numbness\u00a0that thwarts effective action.<\/p>\n

We Protect\u00a0What We Love<\/p>\n

On my wilderness courses, I tell attendees that the basis\u00a0for the Awake in the Wild meditation practice is\u00a0summarized in the phrase: \u201cWe protect what we love.\u201d\u00a0When we bring meditative awareness to something in\u00a0nature, like a baby sparrow in her nest or the first\u00a0snowdrop flowers emerging from a long winter, we can\u00a0discover our heart blooms with tenderness. It is\u00a0sometimes what restores our humanness.<\/p>\n

It is precisely this love, this open-hearted connection\u00a0that is the basis for personal resilience and sustainability\u00a0on a macro level. When we see how this beautiful planet,\u00a0its creatures, and ecosystems are threatened, our heart\u00a0galvanizes an active and sometimes fierce response, in\u00a0the same way a mother bear will fiercely protect her cubs\u00a0against threats. It is love that helps summon strength\u00a0and passion to steward the earth. However, to feel that\u00a0love necessitates we have intimate contact with the\u00a0natural world. And it requires that we listen to the pulse\u00a0of our own heart.<\/p>\n

This reminds me of the story of John Seed, the Australian\u00a0author and activist. He received a call some years ago\u00a0from a friend inviting him to join protests in a section of\u00a0rainforest near his house in New South Wales. A timber\u00a0company was trying to clear-cut old-growth forest, and\u00a0people came to stop the loggers until a court order could\u00a0take effect.<\/p>\n

Not being a natural protester, John found himself at the\u00a0front of the demonstration facing huge bulldozers and\u00a0logging trucks. What happened next surprised him and\u00a0radically changed his life. Rather than thinking it was he,\u00a0John, who was protesting, he realized it was the\u00a0rainforest moving through him that was protesting the\u00a0logging. The forest was acting through a larger\u00a0ecosystem\u2014via John\u2014to protect itself. Such moments of\u00a0insight shatter our illusion of separation and\u00a0individualism.<\/p>\n

My hope is that perhaps as we spend more time in the wild, attuned to the beautiful yet fragile natural world, we will, like John, be moved and feel the earth moving through us as part of a healthy ecosystem, to protect itself. And that, perhaps, we will learn to explore the paradox and ambiguity, to feel both the beauty and fragility, our deep nourishment and devastating losses\u2014as we grow an inner resilience and outer sustainability to support what we love.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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