I recently watched the PBS show Giants Rising, which features "the secrets of the redwoods — the tallest and among the oldest living beings.” Part of the program dealt with the sense of awe and wonder that the trees often elicit in us, and how spending time observing the redwoods (and, by extension, nature and wild places) can relieve stress and provide several other benefits.
It is becoming increasingly evident that exposure and experiences in nature and wild places are important to our overall well-being. Richard Louv’s book "Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder," published in 2005, has generated considerable interest, discussion, and research on the importance of childhood experiences with nature.
His thesis is that, unlike earlier generations, kids today do not get enough time outside in nature to develop a knowledge or appreciation of it. Louv also notes that an important component of child development is a strong connection between the child and nature. More recently, attention deficit disorder, a decline in physical and emotional wellbeing, reduced use of the senses, and a decline in stewardship of the natural world have been found to be associated with a lack of experiencing nature.
In the PBS show on the redwoods, a photographer found herself awed by the scale and grandeur of them. For me, it brought to mind Sigurd Olson’s book "Runes of the North." Olson is perhaps best known for his efforts to establish the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota. In one of the chapters, he recounts how excited an 85-year-old geologist became upon finding a particular rock. When asked how he could still get so much pleasure and excitement from the discovery, the geologist responded that, “the secret is never to lose the power of wonder at the mystery of the universe. If you keep that, you stay young forever. If you lose it, you die.”
Thoughts of awe, wonder, and mystery of nature are perhaps often associated with place such as the redwoods, Grand Canyon, Yosemite, or Yellowstone. But there's no doubt many North Dakotans have experienced that sense of awe, wonder, and mystery of the natural world within the state, perhaps in the badlands, among the old cottonwoods of Smith Grove, scanning the Milky Way, or watching falling stars. Maybe even while closely observing a spider web.
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If you have had a particularly memorable experience of awe, mystery, and wonder with nature in North Dakota that you would like to share, Prairie Public would like to hear about it. Let us know by posting your experience on Prairie Public’s Facebook page.
