Stop and Smell the Roses of Summer
I welcome nature’s warm embrace and a familiar vista of sky and land. After months of hibernation, it is a precious moment to vacate the mind and relax in a place that enlivens my spirit and senses. Hello summer! Hello sandy dune! In bathing suit and bare feet, I am fully alive this morning. I stop and smell the roses.
Taking a break from work to retreat to a natural environment is a way to wellness. Longer days shine more light on nature and the nature of things. Hot weather slows the pace enough to see and smell the beauty of nature, to hear songbirds, feel the wind, and taste the salty air. Finding peaceful inspiration in a summer respite can be a peak creative experience. Often it is the loved thing that we look forward to doing on a vacation or retreat to a special destination. We can visualize it - a perfect warm weather activity that gives pleasure whenever we recall it throughout the year. Being present in nature is a creative gift that keeps giving.
For me, even on the snowiest winter day, I’ll take a moment to remember a summer day at the beach. I keep it in my memory as a measure of wellness and pure happiness. It is a ready remedy, a meditation that heals again and again. A beach is a great place to take a walk and contemplate the horizon, to see the sun rise and set. The wellness benefits of spending time in nature are stress reduction, and the activity improves physical strength, uplifts mood, and increases creative curiosity and confidence. Lying on a beach physically connects us to the contours of the Earth and big open sky. Immersion in the ocean waves exhilarates every chakra in the body. To warm the body on land and cool it in water reminds us that we are sensual and sentient beings. The contrast stimulates at a cellular level, and this dynamic energy moves and soothes when we mindfully reflect on the vitality that sensation.
Contemplate a peak creative experience in nature and make a plan to get outside and out of your way and do it. Creative wellness happens when we take the time to be present and aware of ourselves and our relationship to nature. It doesn’t require being on vacation or at an exotic location. Taking me-time to unplug in fresh air, even just for 15 minutes on a lunch break, is a pause that refreshes. Find a gentle retreat in nature for a moment or a day. A visit to the beach, a walk in the park, an outdoor adventure with friends. Discover how the outer world enriches your inner nature. Observe and BE. Savor. Experience the connectedness that gives meaning to life. As we remove what has masked the senses and inhibited our free ranging souls, go into nature - breathe deeply and exhale the stress of the last year. Summer is here. Create and recreate. Find your special spot and stop to look, listen, touch, and smell, and enjoy it with all the senses.
Written by Laura Jaquays for the ART HOPE Journal.