Balanced By Nature: Lessons from Outside ⚖️🌿

What comes to mind when you think about nature? 🤔 Is it the plants & animals? How about the weather? Anything outside? All of the above? For me, it’s definitely all of the above, & when I think about them, there’s so much we can learn from what occurs in the natural world.

     The deep thinker in me took the way I view nature to a whole other level. What I can see with my physical eyes has nothing on what is produced in my brain when I interpret things a little farther than necessary. However, this alternative mindset may translate into some knowledge for a few people. Follow me now…🤓

Nature Taught Me Resilience 💪🏽

Picture this: A small spark lights on an extremely hot day, one without rain in weeks. 🔥 Before you know it, that spark has spread across acres of land, destroying trees that have been growing 100 years, vibrant flowers that brighten the area, & shelter for a variety of animals. 

     Although firefighters are able to extinguish the blaze, it was not before it left a path of destruction. There’s nothing but dirt, ashes, & smoke left in what was once a serene setting. 💨 It even affected a nearby farm, burning down half of the farmer’s crops for the season. It seems like all has failed, but there’s a bright side to this. 

     Fire destroys, but it also renews. The cleared out area isn’t a lost cause; it’s a blank canvas. 🎨 The ashes left give soil beneficial nutrients that help plants to grow. Yes, it’ll take awhile to bounce back, but all that matters is IT BOUNCES BACK! The end of one era is just the beginning of another, & that’s the same way life goes.

     There have been times when I thought things were the end of the world. 😭 Going through breakups had me moping around, crying, & angry. I thought I wouldn’t be able to go on without that person…until a new “farmer” decided to flip the once damaged land into a nice payoff for himself & I was back in the love game. The devastation I once felt would diminish as soon as someone else would come into the picture. And just like the unending view of blank land, the clean slate I had post-breakup gave me a few tidbits that would prepare me to do better in my next relationship.

     If the land can bounce back every time, so can you. You just have to use the seemingly broken pieces left from those negative experiences & turn them into something positive. There’s beauty in some of the ugliest situations sometimes. You just have to look for them. 👀

Nature Taught Me Patience 🧘🏽‍♀️

Actually, I’m still learning the art of being patient. It’s never been my strong suit, especially when I know something is supposed to happen. 🤷🏽‍♀️ But when I compare my lack of patience with how nature makes it look easy to wait, I gain a better appreciation for the art form. 

     Nature is full of patience. Take an elephant for example: they stay pregnant for 18-22 months! 🐘 That’s twice as long as it takes humans. But just like human births, the elephant births something amazingly beautiful. With my lack of patience, ya girl would’ve needed a surrogate if it took that long to carry a baby. 🤰🏽 Gestational diabetes didn’t allow me to enjoy all of the good things I love to eat, so that 3-4 months of eating healthy was torturous! I couldn’t even enjoy my baby shower cake as much as I wanted. 🍰😔

     The lifespan of trees is quite a process too. 🌳 It can take a century for one tiny seed to stretch 10’s of feet above us. 🌱 The freshly planted trees would probably side eye the older ones for being so tall & strong. On the other hand though, they’d be optimistic that in time they’d be just as tall as those around them. 

     Hunting is another act of displaying patience. Predators can stalk their prey for very long times. 🐅 Just laying in waiting in the shadows until the perfect time to pounce on what will hopefully be their next meal. They can’t just run to the store or order Door Dash to eat; they have to go get it. Makes me reassured that working through the process of being a business owner, grinding constantly, & observing what & whom are in my surroundings will eventually pay off. I just have to be patient & determined.

Nature Taught Me the Importance of Community 🏠🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒

I’m a bit antisocial, so community hasn’t always been my thing either. Having a hard time trusting others makes it easy for me to keep a healthy distance between myself & others. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned the importance of having a tribe, so I’ve invested more time into the relationships that mean the most to me. 🥰

     Like a wolf pack, the people in my circle are tight-knit, down for each other, & are unstoppable as a unit when tested. 🐺 In my circles, there’s not just one alpha all the time though. We each take turns, depending on the circumstances. The good thing about that is learning from other people. You can also see who’s down for you & to what extent so you know how to value & prioritize the relationships.

     You can even learn a little something from the environment. Think about how the rain & sun impact plant growth, how bees help pollinate flowers so more will grow, how insects digging through soil encourage growth, how trees release oxygen out into the atmosphere. It’s all just one big circle of life, & that’s how we should strive to be in our communities. ⭕️

     Having a strong tribe can make or break you. Your people have to be thorough. 💪🏽 It’s ok to move solo sometimes, but when it’s all said & done, you need a solid foundation that can help you in your time of need, encourage you when you’re not at 100%, & show you love so you know everybody everywhere isn’t so cold hearted.

Nature Taught Me Balance ⚖️

Life is all about balance. There’s always another side of the coin, something with a completely different vibe. 🪙 It’s always an adventure. And because of that, you have to respect that things are never going to be the same as that particular moment in time.

     Nature has probably taught me the most about balancing in life. There are 4 seasons, all that bring something different to the table:

• 🌸 Spring brings new life. The flowers start to bloom. Insects start buzzing around. Animals come out of hibernating, sometimes with new members of the family. And the sun comes out a little more & is definitely warmer. 
• ☀️ Summer comes along with more heat & more life. You hear way more animal & insect noises outside. It’s the time that things are really up & running. Not to mention, the days are longer so you can maximize the sunshine. 
• 🍁 Autumn is my favvvvvvv! The air gets a little cooler, & outside is beautiful. The leaves start to change colors & fall off the trees. It starts getting dark earlier. Animals start to prepare for the cold winter months, & everything slows a little.
• ❄️ Winter brings what can appear to be death: leafless trees, not many flowers, animals get ghost, & stuff starts to freeze. It’s a time when everything rests & gears up for the cycle to begin all over again. 

     I tend to try to evolve like the seasons do annually, but it doesn’t happen like the cycle they have. When I set my goals, I get focused & go into planning mode. It’s kind of like autumn; I’m gearing up for what’s to come & making sure things are in order. I’ll bust out my Intentional Planner to add my annual vision & goals so I can remind myself of what I want to accomplish. Then I get busy on the action steps. 👣

     My spring & summertime pretty much are combined. I’m working on new things that I may or may not disclose. 🤐 I’m out & about more, socializing with others. The laser-focused side of me stays on go-mode…until I crash or run out of gas. 🔋🪫 That’s when I enter a cycle of spring/summer with short periods of winter between until the next task, goal, or idea comes along.

     My version of winter probably comes once every couple of days. I find myself going nonstop with so much that I end up either burning out or recognizing it’s time to take a break. 😩😴 In those times, I stay in the house, eat takeout instead of cooking, take occasional naps, & just chill on the couch. Then quarterly, I’ll book a getaway somewhere so I can rest & rejuvenate. 🛫 It doesn’t matter what season the world is in; I’m transitioning as needed so my life can balance out.

Nature Taught Me the Power of Change 🔌

People look at change 2 ways: beautiful or devastating. 😍😡 Both are necessary though. Nature is constantly changing: the leaves change colors, fall off the trees, & sprout back up months later; the weather can go from Hell to Antarctica in a matter of days or snow to sunshine in a matter of minutes; people start building things so wildlife is forced to find a new place to live; the list goes on & on.

     Regardless of how you view it, change is inevitable. 💯 It will happen one way or another, & you usually can’t do a thing about it. I used to not do well with change. I like the predictability of things & routines. I’m still a routine-type chick, but I don’t get all anxious when something has to switch up anymore either. I can manage, but I prefer another kind of change: evolving.

     A word of advice: if you’re not changing, you’re not living or growing. As you mature, you’re supposed to improve. Sometimes that means switching up your whole identity (like going from being for the streets to a housewife or from a heathen to a saint 😜). Other times, it can be as subtle as changing your hair. Either way, embrace the evolution of your being. 

     I purposely push myself to change now. I like seeing the growth over the years. Ya girl has come a long way too. I went from extremely shy but in the club all the time to a little shy & a homebody. From ready to pop off at any second to practicing restraint because it’s not worth the energy or time & journaling it out of my system. 📝 From swallowing my feelings to avoid conflict to protecting my peace through boundaries. 🧘🏽‍♀️ Who knows what the next change will be for me, but it’ll be a beautiful adventure as well.

     Take the time to admire nature & what you can learn from it. Not only will you pick up some new information, but you’ll also be able to appreciate the things God has created. 😘🙌🏽 We all have something we can learn from another person, place, or thing. We just have to open our minds a little more to see the big picture!