Sometimes We Forget About The Simple Things

When I was reading Culture Jam there was a passage that really grabbed my attention. You can find this passage in the book on Page 4, Paragraph 4, "We are not fully detached from the Natural World".  This really hit me because as I read it I thought back to the two weeks before I had gone to a wildflower preservation in Conestoga by my hometown. When we went there I had no cell phone service, no internet, nothing. It was just a group of friends and I. We ended up sitting in the middle of a field with no city lights, no hussle and bussle or honking horns from cars. Just us and nature. As I looked up into the sky, I realized that I could not remember the last time that I saw the sky so clear. Honestly, I could not remember the last time I took the time to actually look. In the passage it talks about how we lost our connection with nature. How we can name several things that are happening in pop culture but we cannot identify 3 types of trees. When I read it, I had to agree with it. I have lost my detachment with nature. I cannot remember the last time I took a walk in the park and actually enjoyed it for the nature anything like that. If you are reading this I would like you to click on the a link and do as the website says. You can find the link on the right hand side of my page. It is called "The Quiet Place" It will only take about 2 minutes, but it will be two minutes well spent.



After I went through this website I realized something. That we, as Americans, are losing the connection with nature. We are so concerned with our cell phones or check our facebooks to see what our friends are up to. We would rather stay inside and play video games than go outside on a hike and enjoy nature. I have to say that I even fall into that. I can remember when I was a child, I did not have video games to occupy my time. I had a yard and my imagination. Today, I see my little cousin and all I see him doing is sitting in front of the TV playing video games or watching a popular cartoon. We are letting ourselves be consumed by these items and we do not even realize it until someone points it out. We feel as if we cannot live without these items, as if they are something that is important to have. As the website said, We can go on a walk outside or go camping but do we still have our cell phones? Yes. Are we actually enjoying nature without the distractions? No. We think we are doing something when in reality we are doing something completely opposite. It even says in Culture Jam that we are addicted to noise, which is true. Either we are talking with someone or listening to music. It is never silent in our lives and when it is we feel uneasy. I understand that we will never find perfect silence but even going to a quiet area. I know when I am home, I like to go to this Gazebo in a park near my house and just think. It is not completely silent but it is still very quiet. In the end all of these objects in our lives are just meaningless things that really do not matter. So next time that you are bored, instead of hopping on facebook or turning on your xbox, leave your phone in your room and take a stroll in the park and stop and smell the roses instead of passing them by because one day it could be too late

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