2. Reconnecting with nature.
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Nature, or the idea of nature, exists in the early 21st century mind as a commodity. We may purchase products with "natural" ingredients or we may travel to exotic sites, at great expense, to experience nature. Part of the rationale behind the creation of suburbs was an attempt to bring people closer to nature. But, what is nature? The word "nature" conjures images of green landscapes filled with non-human plant and animal life. Nature is thought of as anything or anyplace that is not human. Moreover, the very presence of humans "destroys" nature. Yet, strangely, many people feel that we have a fundamental urge to "reconnect" with that which, by definition, we can never truly experience in its purest form: the raw inhuman primitive energy of the wild.
When we view nature in this way, understanding nature as life that exists without human beings, we make nature into an ideal we can never truly know. "Reconnecting with nature," for most people consists of surrounding oneself with as many green things as possible and trying to exist as if we are not present or, more often, pretending not to notice the impact we have on any "natural" environment we enter. Our very presence always has a profound impact on the spiritual energy of our surroundings just as the the trappings of civilization we bring with us have have gross effects on the land we choose to use for human purposes.
If we want to establish a genuine connection with nature we must take up another less popular way of looking at nature and come to see mankind in the continuum of creatures, and the environments created by man as manifestations of nature. In this way, we no longer need to impossibly seek nature outside of ourselves. We can reconnect with nature in any environment including the city.
In the idealistic view of nature "reconnection" produces an instant sense of spiritual well-being because "green nature" is, by definition pure. The sense of well-being inspired by "green nature" comes from believing we are in harmony with the earth. When we strip away the idealism that allows us to take mere scenic dressings of greenery as pure nature we will find instead, through the act of reconnecting, a true picture of the degree to which we have achieved harmony with our surroundings. One may find that the very activities that we have come to think of as quintessential acts of connecting with nature: living far from urban centers in "log cabins" and "ranch homes" instead produce a sense of dissonance-- for, through these acts, we disrupt the normal pattern of living things. By contrast, the city dweller may find, to her surprise, that her surroundings are the most harmonious. Her actions are in sync with her environment and they cause few, if any, ripples in the rhythms of living creatures.
For the city dweller "reconnecting with nature" is an act of observation. It is like re-entering the surroundings we encounter each day with fresh eyes-- without recognizing any of the objects or giving them meaning at first. It is to the see the city as an outsider and to observe the life all around us as other human creatures move through their natural habitat.
If the first task for the urban naturalist is to take the pulse of the city, then the second task is to strip all sense of significance and personal connection from the immediate environment and exist without judgment, in the moment, feeling and perceiving the surroundings as manifestations of nature.
How strange a sidewalk can seem in the frame of mind! One may marvel at the many right angles we often find in cities and you may also notice how some of the sharp angular features have worn with the passage of time. The lights that govern traffic seem like the most unusual flowers, To look at the creatures who inhabit the city it is hard to imagine that they constructed all of it. Then there are the periodic commotions that punctuate city life. Notice how people gather to watch a street performer, the lines that snake from night clubs, the shouts of drivers through their open windows over who has the right of way.
Non-human creatures, what we normally call "nature," are also present in all of this. How odd it is to see a tree springing from an iron grate, or a bird tucked between the stone gables of a building and an air conditioner. What of the parks found in cities? What great pains people must go to to reconstruct the liveliness of a bubbling brook in the guise of a civic fountain! In many-ways this captive gallery of ideal nature, found in city parks, is so much closer to that impossible specter of nature people have sought in ragged country meadows. It is symbolic nature that, through its presence, accentuates the angular urban environment, even as the gray stone and glass of the city are still nature themselves. It is there as contrast, in a sense, and it shows us that the city can also manifest "nature" in that older more limited sense.
A contemplation of this kind may lead one to imagine how a place has come to its present condition. It may lead us to recognize the non-human influence on the place, such as the weather and tiny creatures. We may see the cities place in the great timeline of the planet. We may see the far-flung connections between the city and the rest of the earth, imagining the city growing and living through the seasons of history, like the ancient trees that have witnessed many centuries, the city appears to us as a living organism. Then, at last, we can connect with mother nature as she breathes through this urban fabric.
Last: 1. Intro
Next: 3. The Living History of a City
From: The Urban Naturalist.
Nature, or the idea of nature, exists in the early 21st century mind as a commodity. We may purchase products with "natural" ingredients or we may travel to exotic sites, at great expense, to experience nature. Part of the rationale behind the creation of suburbs was an attempt to bring people closer to nature. But, what is nature? The word "nature" conjures images of green landscapes filled with non-human plant and animal life. Nature is thought of as anything or anyplace that is not human. Moreover, the very presence of humans "destroys" nature. Yet, strangely, many people feel that we have a fundamental urge to "reconnect" with that which, by definition, we can never truly experience in its purest form: the raw inhuman primitive energy of the wild.
When we view nature in this way, understanding nature as life that exists without human beings, we make nature into an ideal we can never truly know. "Reconnecting with nature," for most people consists of surrounding oneself with as many green things as possible and trying to exist as if we are not present or, more often, pretending not to notice the impact we have on any "natural" environment we enter. Our very presence always has a profound impact on the spiritual energy of our surroundings just as the the trappings of civilization we bring with us have have gross effects on the land we choose to use for human purposes.
If we want to establish a genuine connection with nature we must take up another less popular way of looking at nature and come to see mankind in the continuum of creatures, and the environments created by man as manifestations of nature. In this way, we no longer need to impossibly seek nature outside of ourselves. We can reconnect with nature in any environment including the city.
In the idealistic view of nature "reconnection" produces an instant sense of spiritual well-being because "green nature" is, by definition pure. The sense of well-being inspired by "green nature" comes from believing we are in harmony with the earth. When we strip away the idealism that allows us to take mere scenic dressings of greenery as pure nature we will find instead, through the act of reconnecting, a true picture of the degree to which we have achieved harmony with our surroundings. One may find that the very activities that we have come to think of as quintessential acts of connecting with nature: living far from urban centers in "log cabins" and "ranch homes" instead produce a sense of dissonance-- for, through these acts, we disrupt the normal pattern of living things. By contrast, the city dweller may find, to her surprise, that her surroundings are the most harmonious. Her actions are in sync with her environment and they cause few, if any, ripples in the rhythms of living creatures.
For the city dweller "reconnecting with nature" is an act of observation. It is like re-entering the surroundings we encounter each day with fresh eyes-- without recognizing any of the objects or giving them meaning at first. It is to the see the city as an outsider and to observe the life all around us as other human creatures move through their natural habitat.
If the first task for the urban naturalist is to take the pulse of the city, then the second task is to strip all sense of significance and personal connection from the immediate environment and exist without judgment, in the moment, feeling and perceiving the surroundings as manifestations of nature.
How strange a sidewalk can seem in the frame of mind! One may marvel at the many right angles we often find in cities and you may also notice how some of the sharp angular features have worn with the passage of time. The lights that govern traffic seem like the most unusual flowers, To look at the creatures who inhabit the city it is hard to imagine that they constructed all of it. Then there are the periodic commotions that punctuate city life. Notice how people gather to watch a street performer, the lines that snake from night clubs, the shouts of drivers through their open windows over who has the right of way.
Non-human creatures, what we normally call "nature," are also present in all of this. How odd it is to see a tree springing from an iron grate, or a bird tucked between the stone gables of a building and an air conditioner. What of the parks found in cities? What great pains people must go to to reconstruct the liveliness of a bubbling brook in the guise of a civic fountain! In many-ways this captive gallery of ideal nature, found in city parks, is so much closer to that impossible specter of nature people have sought in ragged country meadows. It is symbolic nature that, through its presence, accentuates the angular urban environment, even as the gray stone and glass of the city are still nature themselves. It is there as contrast, in a sense, and it shows us that the city can also manifest "nature" in that older more limited sense.
A contemplation of this kind may lead one to imagine how a place has come to its present condition. It may lead us to recognize the non-human influence on the place, such as the weather and tiny creatures. We may see the cities place in the great timeline of the planet. We may see the far-flung connections between the city and the rest of the earth, imagining the city growing and living through the seasons of history, like the ancient trees that have witnessed many centuries, the city appears to us as a living organism. Then, at last, we can connect with mother nature as she breathes through this urban fabric.
Last: 1. Intro
Next: 3. The Living History of a City
From: The Urban Naturalist.