It’s late May and the view from the balcony includes the deep white sands of a gulf beach, cresting waves repeatedly bringing aqua blue water to the shore, a slight ocean breeze that reduces the heat from a bright overhead sun, and…pulsating music from the pool below competing with power tools providing enough volume to vibrate the concrete below our feet. An idyllic scene that would have been so much richer had it been occurring in an Unwired Place, but those are becoming a rare blessing today. Thankfully, on this trip, the construction crews ended their day at 5:00 p.m. and eventually, the DJ ended his entertaining of those gathered around the pool, which provided a peaceful evening listening to the ocean, but it was a sad reminder that the natural wonders God created often become overshadowed with the noise of our current culture.

The perpetual noise of our present world has me contemplating if there are any more Unwired Places to which we can retreat, and as I read Florence Williams’ The Nature Fix just before venturing to Florida, I admit that I was savoring the upcoming opportunity for a bit of “water on the brain” therapy. Similar to the concept of Forest Bathing, studies of happiness and neuroscience document that we experience natural environments in a way that allows us to feel restored, healthier, happier, and even more empathetic. “Thanks to a confluence of demographics and technology, we’ve pivoted further away from nature than any generation before. At the same time, we’re increasingly burdened by chronic ailments made worse by time spent indoors, from myopia and vitamin D deficiency to obesity, depression, loneliness and anxiety, among others.”

Williams shares her experiences of traveling the world, seeking evidence from multiple cultures that the Unwired Places of nature are critical to human happiness and flourishing. She shares “that naturalistic outdoor environments in general remain some of the only places where we engage all five senses, and thus, by definition, are fully, physically alive.” Blood pressure, heart rate, and cortisol levels lower, while immune cells strengthen when we experience the natural world with all of our senses. And one of the most significant findings from all of these studies is that it doesn’t have to be a week-long vacation in the Tetons to see evidence that supports Attention Restoration and Stress Reduction Theories. Five hours a month, even 15 minutes of being outdoors, can restore creativity, improve depression and anxiety, and reduce healthcare costs.

For details on how nature impacts children with ADHD and the importance of active exploration for adolescents, I encourage you to review Williams’ research from the fields of neuroscience and psychology; however, for this health educator, the information outlining the benefits of exercise for all populations, especially when completed in nature, intrigued me. “When we are out in nature, we are generally self-propelled, breathing in oxygen, liberating our lungs and our cardiac capillaries from their usual cramped, desk-hunched configurations, and arresting, temporarily, the slow backward death march of our telomeres. Exercise as a cure for all things has been so drilled into the public health establishment that it crowds out everything else, with the possible exception of quitting smoking and washing hands.”  

Williams’ research provides readers with some “essential take-homes: we all need nearby nature; we benefit cognitively and psychologically from having trees, bodies of water, and green spaces just to look at; we should be smarter about landscaping our schools, hospitals, workplaces and neighborhoods so everyone gains. We need quick incursions to natural areas that engage our senses. Everyone needs access to clean, quiet, and safe natural refuges in a city. Short exposures to nature can make us less aggressive, more creative, more civic minded and healthier overall.”

So, be encouraged to locate those Unwired Places where the greens and blues of nature restore your soul. Consider the importance of engaging in a Digital Detox, finding spaces where there is no cellphone reception, and you don’t need headphones because God provides the soundtrack. You don’t even have to wear a weird-looking EEG device on your head, Williams has already done this in her efforts to prove the benefits of being in nature for us. So, grab your family for a walk in the neighborhood park, or even better, re-discover each other on a week-long vacation to one of our amazing national parks; I’ve yet to find one that doesn’t have something worthwhile to offer!

Unwired Places are a rarity in this world; however, I am willing to propose that you have experienced at least one of these places in your life. Would you please consider sharing some of those places, in the comments below where you have been restored?

Reference:

Williams, F. (2018). The nature fix: Why nature makes us happier, healthier, and more creative. W.W. Norton & Company.