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In Harmony with Nature | Payal Gandhi Hoon

trees-mainHave you ever experienced vibrations and feelings when you are with nature?

labrador riverRemember the last time you stood witnessing the vastness of the ocean or when you stood in a valley surrounded with majestic mountains, or walked on a road that meandered along lush green tall pine trees? What was it like for you?

When you take in that breath of freshness, hear the music of the stream or soak the splendor of God’s creation with your eyes, that is when you are one with nature.

Today we live a lifestyle that is moving away from natural to unnatural. We marvel for it is cheaper, easily available and new. This is in no way to discount progress of any sort, but there still is wisdom in how generations have lived in unison with nature. There were and are tribes worldwide and in India that have worshiped trees, stars, sun, moon, the planets, water, mountains and so on. And there are many lessons to learn from nature and model in our lives.

  • Nature is giving and unconditional in doing so. From the tree that gives pure life source – oxygen – to flowers that bring joy to the heart
  • Nature has beauty of its own – not comparing just being! It has beauty of its own. Even the smallest blade of grass is happy to be the way it is not raring to be a rose. Nor is the rose raring to be the tree
  • Nature is symbolic of the cycle of life. There are no shortcuts and it is in no rush to get from here to there. There is a natural pace that makes a seed turn into a sapling and then a plant with blossoming flowers to go through seasons of change and finally wither away

When you take in that breath of freshness, hear the music of the stream or soak the splendor of God’s creation with your eyes, that is when you are one with nature.

Colorful flowers in clay flowerpots hanging on wall of building in Cordoba, SpainNow the question is how can we give back to nature? Many of us may not take a step thinking what difference will it make if I do this. And it converts into us collectively thinking this way and living in an illusion of no choice. We can make a difference where we are right now.

Here are some do-ables!
  • Carry bags to junk the cans/ peels; if you do not find a bin (which in India happens to be a problem mostly). Carry your own bags from home when out to get groceries and other stuff
  • Make separate bags for organic food like leftovers, raw fruit and vegetable peels that can be fed to animals
  • Keep wide earthen bowls to store water for the birds on the balcony in such hot days
  • Have indoor plants in rooms and on the balcony to maintain the freshness and bring nature home
  • Plant a tree on each of your family member’s birthday or anniversary
  • Gift a plant when you call upon someone. Better than those wasted recycled gifts
  • Use compact fluorescent light (CFL) tubes and avoid lighting incandescent bulbs for long durations as apart from increasing your electricity bill, they give out heat
  • Use the gas burner more often than the microwave for healthy eating and especially for heating liquids
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