Sun Day.

The weather today was gorgeous. It truly was Sunday. I managed to spend some time outdoors. It was busy on the streets; lots of people playing, walking, running, biking, rollerblading, Frisbeeing, etc.

The sun literally and figuratively brings the life out of people. The activity I saw today goes to show how much people love to be outdoors, frolicking with nature. This made me think of Naturopathic Medicine, specifically nature cure, and how incredibly healing the sun, fresh air, and greenery can be for our minds, body, and souls.

Today, as I was walking along, I felt the incredible urge to move; to touch nature with both my hands and feet. I wanted to climb a tree, run on a beach, or hop on the mountainous rocks lining the coast. My craving for the latter was super strong. "Get me to the coastline!" my mind screamed. But, rather than getting in a car driving hours to reach some decent Ontario coast, I simply took note of this desire. Instead, I choose to embrace the nature---nature that I could easily grasp with my hands and feet---that surrounded me at the time. It's funny how easy it is to forget about the nature that still exists in urban settings. There may not be a deep, mossy forest, nor any salty seawater, but there still are little natural wonders all around if you look closely.

Sometimes I think we crave 'nature' so much that it causes us to act radically, which in turn further destroys what remains of our natural surroundings. For example, we get in our cars and drive two hours to the cottage or fly to the Rockies to go backpacking. Sure these trips sound fun and are full of nature cure, but they unfortunately add to our already massive carbon footprints. So basically: "I love nature so much that I am willing to harm it in order to get it" ...and how much sense does that make?

Now I am not proposing that we never arrange for days in which we are immersed in the beauty of Mother Nature. Instead, I propose that we try to satisfy our nature cravings on a daily basis so that we don't have act radically and 'get away from it all'. Savour the bits of nature that surround us everyday: the glimmer of sunshine peaking through the window, the maple trees lining the street, the squirrel scurrying away.

I think everyone can benefit from a little more nature and a few more Sundays. No matter how concrete the jungle may seem, just look way up, because we've always got the Sun, sky, and stars to reconnect us.