This week I took myself on a therapeutic walk around the Matthaei Botanical Gardens. The weather was warm and breezy and although the trees are still bare, there are sprouts everywhere and the walk did wonders to improve my mood. I made myself an appointment to take this type of walk once a week.
Here are a few friends I found along the way…
Most of the blooming things right now are very small and easily overlooked, except, of course for the daffodils. I spent almost two hours walking and taking photos. I encountered two gardener snakes, both of whom were camera shy.
I brought my sketchbook along but didn’t even take it out of my bag. I was so engaged in looking and being that I didn’t feel the urge to stop to sketch. However, it is quite likely that I will be sketching from these lovely reference photos soon.
I think Nature Therapy (or Forest Bathing) should be a thing prescribed for everyone’s well being. A simple walk in a natural space, with no purpose in mind, just to notice all the living things around you, is food for the soul. Our modern world of concrete, metal, and digital devices are distractions from the therapeutic connections we can make with the natural world.
