"Being in nature, or even viewing scenes of nature, reduces anger, fear, and stress and increases pleasant feelings. Exposure to nature not only makes you feel better emotionally, it contributes to your physical wellbeing, reducing blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension, and the production of stress hormones. It may even reduce mortality," according to the University of Minnesota. The school's web page goes on to say that a connection with nature eases pain, increases focus, improves mood, and fosters community connection and empathy.
I'm lucky that I live in an incredibly beautiful natural environment, filled with enormous trees, wildflowers and birdsong. Even so, I've been loving Nature 365, a web journal that offers a meditative daily dose of nature. Created by former National Geographic photographer Jim Brandenburg and film director Laurent Joffrion, the site offers a very short but incredibly beautiful video each day (three of my favorites: a snowshoe hare, ice breaking up in a river, and a thunderstorm*). Every time I open my daily email reminder, it feels like a small gift: one that I want to share with you.
* Turn up your volume. You won't want to miss the sometimes subtle sounds.
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