When life gets hard or stressful, it becomes easy to forget about the things that make you happy. Getting enjoyment from the simple things in life starts to sound like a chore, and people tend to stop partaking in the activities that remind them of the beauty of life. Anyone can fall victim to this mentality once in a while—I know I have. That’s why it’s important to keep close to you the things that bring you happiness. For myself, nature is the one thing that always reminds me to appreciate life. Nature never fails to make me happy, and I urge everyone to find for themselves what nature is to me.
Saying, “nature makes me happy” tends to sound a bit overdone and cliche. But there’s something about the simplicity of nature that makes it so incredibly peaceful and divine. I live in Arizona, so the nature that I’m surrounded with usually consists of cacti and dirt. If I want to see the “good stuff,” I have to drive at least an hour away or go on a road trip, so I’ve learned to find beauty in every part of the Earth, not just the green scenery and blue oceans.
As someone who lives in my head the majority of the time, spending time in nature is my favorite way to ground myself. Whether I’m just sitting in my backyard soaking in the fresh air, or I’m admiring the moon and the stars on a mountain in Sedona, nature reminds me of the good that the world has to offer.
There’s also something remarkable about watching nature exist without human intervention. Hiking in forests and watching the deer and squirrels, or just watching the way that the trees move with the wind, always gives me a comforting sense of smallness. It reminds me that my egotistical human problems are so tiny in the grand scheme of things. That there’s so much life and so many things to look forward to and experience outside of my worries. I think that’s the best part about nature—that when you feel connected to the Earth, you start to feel connected to yourself and other people too.