This morning, as I was heading out for a peaceful walk in the woods, my first instinct was to reach for the iPod and accompanying headphones to keep me company.
Then I thought, why would I want to drown out all the lovely sounds of nature on a fine morning like this? So, I left the iPod behind and headed out to see what I could hear.
As I started my walk between two fields, I picked up the singing of several different kinds of birds. Some went “chirp, chirp” while others went “kah, kah.” It was an awesome melding of complementing, yet disparate sounds.
Once on the forest trail, I heard rustling in the grass as little woodland creatures scurried along. And opening my ears even more, I could here the wind whispering in the trees.
After a short jog, I started listening to my own breathing. There is something inherently comforting about the steady rhythm of breath. Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out.
Crunching gravel under my feet reminded me of home.
On the way back up the hill, I stopped to sit on a bench carved out of a stone wall. I closed my eyes and just listened. Ah, the sounds of nature. It’s kind of ironic how people actually pay for CDs and sound machines with nature sounds when one can just step outside and hear the same (OK, maybe not the ocean, unless you happen to live by the coast).
Regardless, I think we would all feel just a little bit better if we unplugged our ears now and then and listened to the outside world. It is an ongoing masterpiece.
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