This blog is the final one, at least for now, on the healing power of nature. Why is a psychotherapist writing about nature you might ask… because I believe that nature has so much to offer us in terms of wisdom, healing, and well-being.
Unfortunately we have become more and more disconnected from nature by our modern lifestyle while the promise of a pill for all our ills has not panned out.
I want to speak of the healing power of trees. I must admit I have an unabashed love for trees. I spent a good deal of my childhood climbing trees and perching myself on the highest possible limb to get that bird’s eye view. Some of my happiest times were up in trees taking in the expansive view, eating the various fruits they offered, swinging from their branches, and letting go to fall into a large pile of autumn leaves.
Beyond the childhood pleasures they bring us, trees do such much for us. They produce oxygen which is especially important in our world today with the heavy carbon footprint we humans are creating. Trees are at least slowing this destructive reality. The Amazon, for instance, has been referred to as the “lungs of our planet”. Without their oxygen our planet may not survive. In addition, trees provide shade from the sun and heat, wonderful fruits and nuts that nourish us, a home for birds and animals… and, of course, their beauty.
Who has not been filled with wonder at the sight of trees? Each season reveals a unique beauty… the ice and snow covered beauty of winter, the light-filled, translucent buds of spring, the deep, lush shades of green and flowering buds of summer, and the brilliant spectrum of autumn colors. Their beauty, wonder and awe still the mind and excite the soul.
Scientists from Stanford have been studying the effects of awe. They’ve reported that 75% of the experiences of awe their subjects reported were elicited by nature. The dense greenery of forests is one of those triggers for awe. The research found that in the wake of awe our “minds are blown” thus allowing us to revise our mental frame of reference and think more critically; we feel a deeper connection to others and our world; and we experience increased empathy, generosity, altruism, and general well-being, as in lighting up the same centers of the brain as food and sex.
Finally, the wisdom of trees must be acknowledged. Trees can be some of our greatest teachers. Have you ever spent time just observing or sitting by a tree? They model lessons we all can benefit from… seeing how grounded they are by the root systems that tether them to Mother Earth, seeing how they sway in the breeze and just naturally “go with the flow”, seeing how they always seek the light and move toward it, and how they persevere, adapt and grow regardless of obstacles and impediments.
And perhaps most important, trees reflect so clearly the changing of the seasons and remind us of the cycles of nature and the rhythm of life cycles. They show us the nature of impermanence and the necessity of death in the service of life. They model the cycles of birth, growth, aging, death and rebirth that we experience in our life journey. So to the trees I bow in gratitude and leave you with this poem from Mary Oliver.
When I Am Among the Trees
When I am among the trees,
especially the willows and the honey locust,
equally the beech, the oaks and the pines,
they give off such hints of gladness,
I would almost say that they save me, and daily.
I am so distant from the hope of myself,
in which I have goodness, and discernment,
and never hurry through the world
but walk slowly, and bow often.
Around me the trees stir in their leaves
and call out, “Stay awhile.”
The light flows from their branches.
And they call again, “It’s simple,” they say,
“and you too have come
into the world to do this, to go easy, to be filled
with light, and to shine.”