I really want to discuss the topic of nature and how important it is for children’s development. When I think of getting back to nature, I think of Henry David Thoreau and his nature memoire “Walden”. Most people are familiar with Henry David Thoreau as an american author, poet and tax resister. A few years of Henry David Thoreau’s life he inhabited a 10-foot by 15-foot cabin he built by himself in the woods observing, living closely to nature and receiving all the gifts that came with that experience along with it’s challenges- the delicate side of nature, along with the dangerous. I admire his dedication to immersing himself fully into nature and the insight it brought him. I would love to have the opportunity to do the same one day. But for the moment I can apply his memoir to help introduce my children to the natural world.
You can imagine my excitement when I came across a children’s book of Henry David Thoreau’s life and ideas.
I haven’t had the opportunity to purchase this book yet since I just came across it today. I’m looking forward to when I do purchase this book in the near future. Studies have shown that children are spending less and less time playing and learning outside.
Earth Day to me means something more than recycling or buying green products. In fact I disdain the marketing ploy of corporate and government “environmentalists” which ignore the responsibility they have in the damaging effects and purposeful suppression of alternative energies because of their vested interest in keeping things the way they are. These mainstream environmental organizations advocate responsible legislation to protect some endangered species yet ignore the destruction of rainforests and indigenous people who inhabit them. I could go on and on talking about the mess, but let’s focus on the message. Getting back to our roots, as stewards of this spaceship earth, it is our responsibility to care for our home. I remember reading a book several years ago by Buckminster Fuller called Critical Path. It was by no means an easy read for me, but it greatly changed my perspective of what he called Spaceship Earth. That book led me to my fascination of Earthships and a revolution by design and invention.
During each hour our Spaceship travels 60 thousand miles around the Sun and also spins 1,000 miles on its own axis accompanied with a moon, its gravitational pulls, and a sun for our major source of energy. We have mineral, fossil fuel deposits and vegetation for sustenance on board. This living spaceship is beaming with life and energy. The wealth within nature is absolutely beautiful when found. We can show children that there is abundance and love in this world, instead of scarcity and fear. In closing I’d like to share a quote of Buckminster Fuller’s I always enjoyed:
“Real wealth is indestructible and without practical limit. It can be neither created nor lost – and it leaves one system only to join another. Real wealth is not gold. Real wealth is knowing what to do with energy.”
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