Ode to Fall

Fall colors in Shenandoah National Park

Days are getting shorter, there’s a chill crisp in the air.

Squirrels have turned hoarders, there’s not a moment to spare!

Must gather those nuts, stock up, and prepare

For Winter’s coming, cold winds, and snow,

No telling how harsh those chill winds will blow.

But wait! Tomorrow’s not yet so stop now and see.

Don’t rush past, take this moment to breathe.

Cherish Queen Autumn in all her majesty.

Summer’s bye, as all yesterdays are gone

Winter’s not here, for tomorrows never come.

Today is the golden-hued opportunity Nature does endow

So breathe deep the beauty of the Here and the Now.

No Child Left Inside

You may have heard the term, "nature deficit disorder," coined by Richard Louv in his book, Last Child in the Woods (2005). According to Louv, today's children spend far less time outdoors than even a generation ago. With the rise in electronic entertainment - from television & DVDs to computer games to social networking sites like myspace and facebook, to cellphone texting and Wii - today's children are spending more than 50 hours a week with electronic media (Kaiser Family Foundation).

This disconnect from nature has been linked to childhood obesity, attention disorders, and stress and depression in children. Conversely, recent research has shown that children with ADHD concentrate better after a walk in the park. And overall health improves for both children and adults who live near parks or woods, even in urban environments.

The benefits to children of re-connecting with nature include:

• increase in attention span, focus, and self-discipline
• better problem-solving and cooperative behavior
• increase in creativity, self-esteem, and overall happiness

According to the Children and Nature Network, "Children will be smarter, better able to get along with others, healthier and happier when they have regular opportunities for free and unstructured play in the out-of-doors."

You don't have to send your kids away to camp, take a family vacation to a National Park, or even allow them unsupervised play in the woods across the street. Outdoor activities can take place - safely- in your neighborhood park or even in your own backyard. Making outdoor play a family activity has the added benefit of strengthening family ties and creating shared memories that your kids will cherish for many years to come.

Check out these resources for family-oriented nature activities:

• The Children and Nature Network offers a free Nature Clubs for Families do-it-yourself toolkit
  
• The National Wildlife Federation provides easy and practical ideas for a family "green hour" every day: What Is A Green Hour?

Greening the Family

You're already reducing, re-using, and recycling. You're bringing your own reusable bag to the organic market, you've replaced all your ordinary lightbulbs with compact fluorescents, and you've even started composting. So now what? Well, how about taking the burden of "going green" off your own shoulders and getting the whole family involved?

Here's a few simple suggestions for making the green revolution fun for the whole family:

(1) Toy recycling night. Have your kids go through their toys and games, considering what they want to keep and what they no longer play with. For every toy no longer wanted, have them consider if it can reused (by being given to someone else), recycled (toys with wooden or plastic parts), or reduced (thrown away). Assign 2 points for every reused or recycled toy, 1 point for everyone reduced. Decide ahead of time a realistic points total for your family and the treat that will be rewarded when the total is reached (such as family fun hike at a nature reserve or park).

(2) Plant a tree. Research trees that are native to your area and have the family go along to the nursery to pick one out. You can have fun planting the tree in your yard while enjoying a backyard picnic.

(3) Organize a community clean-up day. Have your kids and their friends make posters to put up around the neighborhood. Enlist other families to help clean up streets, sidewalks, and curbs. Enjoy a community potluck lunch after the work is done!

For more ideas for family fun while going green, check out these websites:
www.thedailygreen.com

www.treehuggingfamily.com

Just Relax!

Feeling stressed? Who isn't these days? April is Stress Awareness Month. According to WebMd.com, a certain amount of stress in one's life is normal. Too much stress, however, can lead to headaches, stomachaches, insomnia, depression, a weakened immune system, and other serious health problems.

One of the easiest ways to maintain a healthy lifestyle is to learn how to relax. Simple changes in your lifestyle can often be the best cures for stress. Here are some suggestions:

• Turn off the television and listen to peaceful music instead.
• Add a water fountain in your living room or bedroom. The sound of gently burbling water can be quite soothing.
• Soak in a warm tub. Add lavender essential oils for a particularly refreshing experience. The scent of lavender is known for its calming qualities.
• Take a walk in a park. Surrounding yourself with nature acts as a counter-balance to weekdays overloaded with cars, computers, and other man-made contrivances. Nature is healing.
• Start a meditation practice. Even five minutes a day can have a profound impact on your stress levels.

In Alexandria, two recurring events can help you start on the road to relaxation:

The first is Dona Witten's guided meditations for healing and relaxation. Dona uses guided relaxation exercises and calming contemplations to help you learn to cope with stress and anxiety. She offers her relaxation workshops at Mindful Hands on the first Saturday of every month.

Also on the first Saturday of the month, Historic Christchurch offers a Labyrinth Walk, from 9:30am to 12:30pm. Labyrinths have been used for many centuries as tools for meditation, contemplation, and relaxation. I've walked the labyrinth myself at Christchurch and it is, surprisingly, profoundly invigorating as well as deeply relaxing. Certainly a great way to start your weeked free from stress!

As Ovid once said: "Take a rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop."

A Little Madness in the Spring

Ahhh, Spring! Spring temperatures (again), Spring smells, Spring sounds. Spring means a freshness in the air, a lightness in the step, the casting off of the heaviness of winter. There's a vivid sense of renewal, rejuvenation, a new kind of energy, a hope, a dream, and the anticipation of things to come. Certainly a kind of madness overtakes us: Spring comes once every year yet each Spring feels new, as if there had never been a Spring before.

To start your Spring off right, I thought I would share with you one of my favorite poems about Spring. This is from Emily Dickinson:

A little Madness in the Spring
Is wholesome even for the King,
But God be with the Clown --
Who ponders this tremendous scene --
This whole Experiment of Green --
As if it were his own!

Finding Beauty in Simple Things

Christopher Engnoth is a talented Alexandria artist as well as the art director at my shop, Mindful Hands, and my life partner. So I'm a little biased when I say his landscapes of the Potomac River and surrounding environs are quite breath-taking. The image here is of Chris' watercolor, "Frozen Potomac." His interest in nature and water was sparked by his childhood on the Chesapeake Bay. He says of his art, "I hope that my paintings can bring some measure of peace and joy to those who, like me, can appreciate the beauty in simple things."

A Sunday Stroll

Living in the city as I do, I don't have the opportunity to walk in the woods often. However, I am fortunate in that I live in Alexandria, Virginia, a city that has a real commitment to preserving "green space" and urban hike-and-bike trails. One such trail is the Mount Vernon Trail, an 18-mile paved trail that extends from George Washington's Mount Vernon Estate north through Old Town Alexandria and then even further north to connect with the W&OD rail trail that runs west for 45-miles through Northern Virginia and nearly to West Virginia.

I live close enough to the trail that I can (if I get up early enough) walk to my work in Old Town, about an hour's stroll away. I find walking the trail to be relaxing and refreshing. The trail follows the Potomac River the entire way and, no matter what mood the river is in - whether cheery and bright blue or dour and gray - I find it soothing just to look at the gently rolling waves and breathe in the fresh air. Though the trail passes right by National Airport and a coal-powered electricity plant, it also has some lightly wooded areas and marshy spots. I share the trail with many rabbits, geese, beavers, and even a turtle or two.

I may not be able to walk in the deep woods on a regular basis but I find the Mount Vernon Trail to be just as restorative. As the naturalist John Burroughs said, "I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order."

The Simple Life

Here is one of my favorite quotes about nature and living the simple life:

"To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter; to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird's nest or a wildflower in spring - these are some of the rewards of the simple life." (John Burroughs)