Can Nature Nuture?

Can green really mean calm, better, nourishing? I heard the most fascinating podcast this week on Hidden Brain. The episode is called Our Better Nature and it asks the question about humans flourishing in our natural habitat, meaning because we evolved in nature over the course of history, would it make sense that having us be around nature would be good for us. The thought is not so foreign when applied to animals (an animal tends to flourish when placed in their natural habitat compared to a cage), but the thought when applied to humans can really make one take pause.

Then again, I have to admit that the whole idea really seemed to click with me as I recently moved to the Carolinas and each morning when I wake up and each evening before I go to bed I’m either standing at the window to look outside or sitting on my back patio, breathing in the fresh air. The green trees, grass, bushes that surround my property are so calming. If I have a tough day at work, my backyard is the first place I seek. I find this interesting as I grew up in a very urban area and have lived in urban areas my entire life until now where I’ve purposely chosen to be somewhere a bit more rural. I appreciate the access to restaurants, shops and theaters that I can find in a city but when I’m looking for peace I search out nature.

Admittedly, I just heard the podcast and this is a research I’d like to look into more, but I can’t say it surprises me and assuming the research holds quite a bit of truth, I can’t help but think that nature just might be a bit of food for our mind, body and soul. Could you imagine the possibilities?

Happy writing this week and for any fellow south/mid-east coasters, please be safe with the storm.