One of the things that we all tend to lose as we grow older, is the curiosity for the little things in nature. As children we go out and explore the world, excited to discover new animals, plants, shapes and colors. As a child you hardly ever see the big picture, your focus is on the small things and I think this is so wonderful because there is so much to discover. As an adult, you have more knowledge about the world and how it functions than a child, so looking at small things as an adult gives you a whole new point of view – you can look at small things with the big picture in the back of your mind. It can be very exciting, inspiring and you will find that it can easily create a deep connection with nature. So, when I’m in the garden it’s one of my favorite things to do, to look out for these little inspirations. You find them everywhere! If it’s watching a bee collecting pollen or looking at a flower as a piece of art work of nature – the beauty of nature makes me go “wow!” like a little child, even today.
Today I found a couple of beautiful things: A feather, a snail shell, broken bird eggshells and while preparing soil for the vegetable plants I also found a germinating acorn. Just look at it and see the magic of nature, right in front of you. Out of this tiny acorn nut can grow a huge acorn tree that will have thousands of new nuts.
I also love the colors and shapes of these egg and snail shell. Isn’t it beautiful?
Keeping a childish way of exploring the world is something that we should never lose in my opinion because without it, there is a lot to miss out! It can be enjoyable to just watch nature but it can do so much more with you, like inspiring you to create something or just allowing you to see one thing with a new perspective. After all, nature is where everything begins. Not only life, but also the inspiration for everything that sorrounds us today, like fashion, architecture or even technology. Watching a bird fly will tell you how to build airplanes, watching ants at work will tell you something about a functioning working structure, the tropical birds give inspirations for colors, the sparkling snow and crystals are the origin of glitter and glamour in fashion…. It is so easy to take ideas or inspiration from nature to create something new with it. Too often though, we forget the connection to nature in this process and that is why a lot of the things we create will even harm nature. So while taking inspiration from nature, I think it is so important to always also give back. Keeping a childish way of looking at the small things will help because it creates a new excitement for nature and will make you apprechiate and respect it more at the same time.
What are the small things that you like to pay attention to?
1 Comment
Heather @ Kiss My Broccoli
May 30, 2011 at 1:22 amWhat lovely little gems! There is a lot of acreage of woods on my parents property and I remember as a child being able to spend hours by the creek just looking around and soaking up the beauty of it all. I recently went on a hike at a local park and found myself reliving those carefree days. It really is amazing how many little treasures can be found if you only take the time to notice!