How can our children teach us to connect to nature?
Photo by Caroline Hernandez on Unsplash
I think it’s fair to say that over time we have grown apart from nature and what we sometimes forget is, we are part of it. Nature is not a place we visit or something we look at from afar: it is home. And with Spring edging closer, now is a perfect time to think about how we can connect to nature.
However we might find ourselves asking the question, how are we supposed to reconnect with the natural world if we don’t know how to? Dr. Ryan Lumber of the University of Derby, divided nature connection into five different categories:
Emotion
Beauty
Meaning
Compassion
Senses
It’s widely accepted that if we engage in each of these aspects, we can improve our connection to the natural world, and we have excellent teachers in our children. Children are open to exploring and engaging with the world around them, so it's hardly surprising that they have a very strong bond with nature. Using these five different categories, we can learn a lot from them.
What's the emotion you're feeling?
Emotion is a big part of how we connect to nature. I don’t mean that we need to burst into tears of joy every time we see a tree! Yet the natural world can evoke emotion in us, and all we need to do is notice it. One way of tapping into our emotions is to think of a memory we have in nature. Even as I look around my garden I can recall echoes of our recent past that I look back on fondly. As these feelings are brought to the fore, we strengthen our link with nature and all it has to offer.
Children have a wonderful way of connecting with nature and their emotions. My five-year-old daughter refers to Phoenix Park in Dublin as “the place where we meet James and Lauren.” We spend a lot of time in Phoenix Park, but the memories she has of meeting those friends once or twice a year are embedded in her. Nature has an amazing way of helping us to look back on fond memories.
Beauty is all around us
It sounds so simple just to stop and look around us when we are outdoors. How often do we do it, though? As we gaze at our surroundings, we start to see things that are pleasing to the eye and we begin to appreciate the beauty our natural world holds.
As a child clutches an earthworm in their hands, they are not repulsed by it; on the contrary, they are in awe of it. They marvel at its ability to burrow through the soil, its slimy texture and its strength.
In general, as we get older, we tend to develop aversions to and fears of all things natural, when really we should try to celebrate them as our children do. This celebration of the beauty of all things wild, allows us to deepen our connection with the natural world.
What's the meaning for you?
Finding meaning in nature boils down to us seeing the wonder of our own lives reflected in the wonder of our natural surroundings. I often think of how resilient a plant can be as it pushes up between two patio stones. I’m reminded of the cycle of life when I look at my compost pile rotting.
And I realise that while children cannot articulate or express this level of meaning fully, they are experts in noticing shapes in nature that mirror characters in a story or items from their daily lives. It’s wonderful to see a child point at the sky and observe all manner of things in the clouds - from dragons to ships to dogs! Something I have noticed with my own daughter is that she loves to find faces on trees.
Compassion equals connection
Care for our natural world is an important aspect of connecting with it. I think in today’s society we are growing in compassion for nature, especially when there is such an emphasis now on the importance of caring for our planet. Engaging in compassion for nature makes it matter to us. If it matters to us, we try to look after it, and the cycle continues.
Last Autumn I was clearing the cobwebs in the house long after the spiders had left them. My daughter was very disgruntled as she was of the opinion that I “shouldn’t wreck the spiders’ homes!” Her empathy for the long-gone spiders was touching and is a prime example of how children can show such care for the world around them.
Engaging our senses
Nowadays our senses are exposed to extremes. On the one hand, all of the amazing inventions that have come about in the last 100 years have made life so much easier for us; there seems to be a new ‘life hack’ every day. Yet on the other hand, our senses can be overloaded as we wander through a busy city or sit in front of a screen. As our senses are pulled in both directions and consequently dulled, so is our connection to nature.
There is a lot to be said for taking time to stop and smell the roses! When was the last time you took a break, walked the long way home, ate your breakfast slowly as you tasted every bite?
Now think about how often children take their time. Their ability to stop and take in the world around them is inspiring. As a child walks through the forest, they aren’t thinking of the time or the destination, they are simply meandering along, kicking up the leaves; running their hands through the ferns; listening intently to the birds singing as they flutter in the branches above.
Learning from our children
Connecting to nature is something that comes so naturally to children. Their ability to see the beauty in nature, remember fun times they had in the forest, take their time and engage their senses, find shapes in the natural world and show compassion for wildlife is something to be admired.
We can learn so much from our children, both directly and indirectly, and we would do well to follow in their footsteps!
