Slow Walking in the State Park

I took a late afternoon slow walk with my nature journal in the state park yesterday, and wandered down a valley trail along a rolling creek.  Stopping at an inviting creek side spot, I sat and listened to the water burble, sketched the scene, and fell into that sense of meditation that comes from connecting with nature in the present moment.

When sun sank, and I was out of time to draw, I snapped a photo of a particularly inviting tree trunk.  This morning, I was able to instantly reconnect to the feelings of immersion in the enchanted woodlands as I sketched and painted that moss-covered, knobby tree trunk.  A lovely way to start the morning.

From the hike:

Art for Self-Care: Slow Walking in Nature

The weather had been rainy & cold all day, and as sunset neared, I took a half hour to walk the field around my house with my cat and my nature journal.  The simple act of walking without a destination or anything to accomplish felt freeing. I could stop and just notice the way the Black-Capped Chickadees calls sounded squeaky, or how every twig and raspberry cane was hung with rain drops.

Once again, nature cleared away stress, filled my soul with peace, and brought me into the present moment.  A slow walk in nature, just noticing the surrounding beauty, is one of my favorite forms of self-care.  

And, I find that making sketches of details I see helps me to connect with nature more deeply.  The act of drawing makes me slow down to observe closely.  And slowing down to look brings me into the present moment.  

I encourage you to add slow-walking & nature sketching to your repertoire of self-care techniques. If you try it, please leave me a comment to let me know how it worked for you.