March re-Wild-ing
"Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair." ~ Khalil Gibran
When I was a child, the woods felt like a sanctuary and a castle and a playground all at once.
Now, I am camping as much as I can these days.
Nathan and I met each other {this time around} through a camping adventure and being in nature surrounded by trees, rivers, wind, and sky makes us both feel at home. We both find trees that feel like long lost friends and have a hard time going to sleep because looking at the night sky full of stars is so mesmerizing.
Our experience with connecting with nature to refill our {wild hearts} took place in a pretty unexpected place this month. It's a state park located in what I'd describe as an offbeat spot south of Anderson, South Carolina...Calhoun Falls State Park.
The Tent of Awesomeness
I have spent many, many years NOT camping and NOT hiking or even spending the day in the wilds of a state park or other wilderness area. It's been a return to something that I dearly love and need to fill my spirit.
I think I know why it's been so easy to stop seeking nature.
It's easy for me to get comfortable, to get OK with just seeing beautiful trees and appreciating them from a distance. After all, I can see them from the window of my office all day and watch them as the sun sets on the farm. It feels enough. But this "enough" is just an illusion.
"Nature is not a place to visit.
It is home."
~Gary Snyder
Seeking time spent in nature is a lot like seeking an authentic life, right?
It's like Nathan says, "Because I just like being out in the f***ing woods."