Where is the Wild?

The wild is everywhere – the sky above, the ground below, snow on sidewalks, urban trees, so-called weeds, the squirrel and chipmunk scurrying along a hydro wire, a crow resting atop a streetlight.

Connecting to nature.

Where do you feel most connected to nature? When you’re hiking in the forest? Paddling across a lake? Camping at a provincial or national park?

Me too.

But we can’t always get to those places, and wilderness camping is a privilege for most people due to the expenses of owning and operating a vehicle as well as camping gear and site permits.

Is it possible to feel anything close to the sensation of forest bathing when you live in a city?

I would like to think so.

Wildlife certainly makes no distinction between city and country. Birds and insects don’t respect any such borders. Nature pushes new shoots of green life through concrete and asphalt.

The wild is everywhere – the sky above, the ground below, snow on sidewalks, urban trees, so-called weeds, the squirrel and chipmunk scurrying along a hydro wire, a crow resting atop a streetlight.

And you sitting at your window watching for signs of life, you wild thing.

Maybe Mother Nature wants to nurture and nourish you wherever you are.