The tiny world beyond ourselves

If anyone were to ask me what one of my favorite things would be, it would be Nature. As a child I have always been connected in some way with mysteries and stories the Earth has to tell.

I remember always wandering out in the woods behind our house. I would sometimes go into the middle of the forest and sit and just listen. I could spend hours, well into the evening, by myself. Listening and taking it all in. Sitting in my classrooms through grade school, I would stare aimlessly out the window and study the way the leaves blew in the wind or the way the light would sprinkle through the trees and land softly on the grass.

As an adult now, nothing much has changed. I continue to listen to the wind and connect with the light. The only difference now is that I usually have a camera in my hand to capture all of these amazing memories that nature has to share with me.

The thing I find most fascinating with Nature is that it's like a whole other world. A world beyond our own... A world filled with so many stories to tell to whomever may listen.

Growth is one of the many stories that nature has to tell us. In the subtle ways the tiny plants will fight their way through the leaves and the thick layers of bushes to seek out the small amounts of speckled light shining through the canopy of trees. Or the way each creature will navigate their way through numerous obstacles to find the very specific things they're looking for.

I find such solitude in this busy little world. It's like when you think of being out in Space and looking back at Earth in her quiet, slow rotating slumber. You think of how mysterious she is yet at the same time you feel content and a deep calm within your soul.

Of course we can't just take a trip out into space so we can stare back at our planet... But for me, being within nature is how I would imagine [doing just that] would be like.

Nature is my escape from reality. It's the place I go to when I am feeling curious. When I am feeling anxious or when I am feeling sad. Nature is my cure for when I need to realize that there is more importance and meaning in this life then that of the constant ringing we hear from the everyday mundane.

The Earth will always be there to speak to you. Just remember to stop every so often and really listen to the stories she has to tell.

Because they are pretty magnificent in their own right!