I spend a lot of time indoors. My classes are indoors, I do homework indoors, and my job is indoors. My problems and stressors seem to be like beings inside. They have walls surround them. I can look out of a "window" and see what life is like outside my problem, but It can be hard to get out of my safe, exiled, and closed room. Yes, it is pretty outside, and there is the sunshine and so many possibilities, but what if I go outside and it rains? Or what if the outdoors is actually worse than my inside space, my current problem.
Taking a step back from all the metaphors, sometimes we have to actually go outside. Going outside can help you de-stress and can help you get away from your problems or even solve them. My favorite way to be one with nature is to go for a run, but sometimes that is a little too "fast-paced." In these instances, a walk is the best solution for focusing and clearing my mind. A walk takes patience, but the outcomes seem to be worth the time spent.
For me, the best walks are ones where you dwell in the center of the wilderness, expose yourself to nature at its very core. I'm talking about walks in unexplored trails or at least, trails that are unexplored and new to you. These trails are mysterious, like out of a fairytale. Suddenly you're not the college student searching for jobs, you're just a person in the big woods. For me, these woods can make me feel like a Disney princess. I'm Snow White with birds flying around me or maybe even Pocahontas, feeling all the colors of the wind. Nature has a way of making you feel small and special at the same time.
These moments help you clear your head. They help you figure out what is really important. Walks are not just healthy physically, but mentally. You also don't need to take a walk in the woods to feel refreshed. Even if you live in a big city, you too can take a walk that brings peace, even in a busy, loud environment.
Walking past buildings and other passersby, you take in everything. A walk like this shows you how many other things are going on besides your problems. Yes, your homework load is awful and maybe your relationship is suffering, but look at that guy sitting in that alley. He probably hasn't had anything to eat all day. Still, he's smiling. It's hard to face the fact that someone may have it worse than you because at the time your problems seem huge. But the reality is everybody has their struggles. It can just take a walk to remember that.
On these walks, you could see a little girl with an ice cream cone. Embrace her happiness. Remember how it felt to be a child. Look for the dogs enjoying their daily walk. Look at everything. So much is going on yet, it's not disrupting, it's comforting.
No matter what kind of walk you take. Enjoy it. Come back with peace of mind and a new outlook on life. Be a Disney princess in the woods or a fly on the wall of a busy city. No matter who you become, ditch the comfort of the indoors and take a walk outside.
