From a very young age I've always enjoyed spending time in the natural world. Exploring the mountains of Washington state to the low lands in Michigan. I simply couldn't get enough!
But as I got older I was unable to get out and do the things I enjoyed. I was busy with making my way through life.
A few years ago, I started going for hikes looking for mushrooms and plants. Finding new species and learning about them. I noticed a change. I was more relaxed and was able to deal with stress a little better after these hikes. So I explored this a little more and started going for longer hikes and even spending nights alone out in the woods.
I noticed a dramatic change from simply staying overnight. I reset my biological clock, I was generally happier, and I was more appreciative of the little things I took for granted.
So, I decided to challenge myself. I would go out overnight without bringing anything with me except a small pocket knife. I would start fires primitive style and build shelters to sleep. It became a challenge to get things done before night fall.
I became pretty good at this. Taking my skills learn from my cultural knowledge and practicing them. I learned how to make a water filter and also how to sterilize it with mushrooms that had antibacterial properties. I had a good place picked out full of edible plants and mushrooms.
I decided to spend weekends in the woods and this is where the real magic happened. After I built a fire, got a shelter up, got water and food I had very little time to just sit and think. Spending a weekend changed that. Not only was I able to figure things out in my life but I was also able to connect with the things around me. I took the time to watch a squirrel who was busy gathering hickory nuts, I watched a slug happily eating a mushroom, I listened to the birds chatting away. Then it hit me, this is what life's about. Enjoying the little things. Being present without worrying about tomorrow or what I should have done yesterday. Pure freedom!
When I would come home, it was like I had been gone for months. I appreciated everything. Seeing my wife and kids was simply an amazing feeling, the bed I used to complain about never felt better. All the little things that we do on a daily basis like eating, bathing, or spending time with loved ones often gets overlooked. It's not until you are without the simple pleasures of life that you truly start to appreciate them.
I have learned to use these experiences in another way that I will talk about in another post very soon.