Looking back at my previous blog posts, they bring to mind different childhood memories or stages in my life. In my first post, I discussed how the water in an area connects all the people and animals in far-reaching and unexpected zones. \u00a0When I was a little kid my parents called me \u201cNature Girl.\u201d \u00a0Though my house has woods for a backyard, it is only really a 50 foot strip made uninhabitable by a creek running through it and two steep hills. It runs through my neighborhood, and I would journey far (for a child) to explore. Growing up with agriculturalists for parents, I believe it made me closer to them, as we shared an appreciation for the Earth. I made friends with the children of my neighborhood on these adventures.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Going off of a reading in my second blog, I talked about how nature can be found in areas you wouldn\u2019t expect, such as urban lands. \u00a0I used to spend all day in our woods, exploring the undeveloped lands of my neighborhood.\u00a0 I would stare into the creek running through our backyard and try to spot as many creatures as I could.\u00a0 I loved all animals and bugs did not faze me. \u00a0As a child I once kissed a toad; I was always overly optimistic.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Once I hit about middle school the outdoorsy phase in my life was over.\u00a0 If I went outside I would get mosquito bites, scratches, and find tics on me the next day.\u00a0 It would be hot, I would sweat, I would have to take a shower, and I would have to change my clothes.\u00a0 It became more trouble than it was worth. \u00a0My schoolwork became more difficult and I was busy doing other, cooler, things.\u00a0 Maybe I didn\u2019t like being teased for kissing a toad. My parents stopped calling me Nature Girl. Despite a more indoor lifestyle, in high school and college I never lost my appreciation for the Earth. However, this more translated into environmentalism and stopping to smell the flowers, instead of actually experiencing nature.\u00a0 Just like my third blog, nature was integrated into my life in unknown ways, though like Richmond and many people nowadays, I didn\u2019t appreciate it like I should.<\/p>\n
Last year when it came time for me to apply for SSIR and Living-Learning Programs. I started looking into Earth Lodge. \u00a0I was looking at other SSIRs additionally, but I knew that at some point, I wanted to do Earth Lodge. Filling out the application, it hit me how little time I actually spent outside.\u00a0 Then I thought about my past, as nature girl. When I looked back at my previous blog entries, I noticed that all of my entries involved aspects of Nature I had never noticed before. This was all the hidden nature I am finding now as a part of Earth Lodge; nature I was too busy to see before.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Looking back at my previous blog posts, they bring to mind different childhood memories or stages in my life. In my first post, I discussed how the water in an area connects all the people and animals in far-reaching and … Continue reading