Nature and the environment is a long entrusted companion of mine. From a young age I spent countless hours running through the forest, swimming in rivers, lakes and oceans, hiking mountains, skiing, snowboarding and a range of activities that involved the outdoors. There is something very special about the outdoors and there is a deep rooted connection to the earth that is only truly felt when you escape the city.

I try to get out in nature as much as possible, sometimes it’s just a bush walk with my dog but that can be all I need at times. The sound of the birds chirping, tall overhanging trees, flowing rivers and a kind of silence and peace that is hard to explain. A silence that you can feel, a silence that at a base level is it’s own energy that you can tap into if you wish.

Years ago I was hiking with my girlfriend (now wife) through the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal. Nepal is a wonderful place full of wonderful people and for me one of the most spiritual places I have ever been to, most spiritual places I’ve ever felt. One night after hiking for 8 hours up stairs on the side of a mountain, we had finally made it to our spot to stay for the night, it was dark and we went inside to the reception area to wait for directions to our room, the power was out so our Sherpa told us we had to hold tight for a while until it all gets sorted. We sat there in the darkness and drank some Roxy, a local rice wine with our friend Reesa. After an hour or so went by our host came back, informed us the power was stuffed and we’d be in the dark for the night, we were so tired and a little cooked that we didn’t mind anyway, all part of the adventure. He escorted us up the external staircase by candle light to our room, the room was a small concrete box with a windowless opening outside. He passed use our candle and we headed inside, got changed and lay on the bed looking outside. The moon shone brightly towards us and as we peered through our opening we realised we were high above the clouds and in complete silence. In the far distance we could see the Himalayan mountain range, the mountains looked so big it was like they were touching the stars. For me it was such a surreal moment, a bucket list moment and a moment I’ll never forget.

In the depth of the silence there was an energy that pursued, it was almost a roar in a way and I felt it connect with my soul. In that moment I felt the mountains, the earth, I respected the power and presence of them and on a deep energy level felt connected to the earth wholeheartedly. It was a moment that made me understand on a fractional level that everything is connected at a certain level and if your able to tap into that sphere it can help you in so many ways. Help you understand yourself, help you be one with the earth, one with the elements, help you find grounding when your lost.

The western world and a large portion of the world as a whole put far to much emphasis on technology and modern luxuries and in doing so creates a divide between some of what I believe are our core requirements. One of those being connected with the earth. Don’t get me wrong, I live in a modern house with technology and modern luxuries, but as I get older and my parenting decisions become more and more influential on my children and how those decisions will shape my children and who they become, I strongly believe a fundamental need of being a human is a constant interaction with the natural environment, because there is an unexplainable connection that is a vital part of being a human. Being within and connected to nature is definitely a core part of my life and definitely a contributor in the search for happiness

Thanks,

Dean