Walking in the Woods

 Sometimes, "when the world is too much with me", to quote William Wordsworth, I know that I have to go for a long walk in the woods to restore my soul.  I have found peace in the woods since I was a small child and walked silently "on moccasin feet" through the forest with my father, feeling the deep, tranquil energy of the trees and listening intently for the sounds of nature all around.  

 The phrase "Forest Bathing" has made its way into our culture, but actually started in Japan as a means to cultivate peace and healing in an increasingly stressful and technologically focused world:

"The Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries came up with the idea of shinrin yoku in the early eighties. Shinrin yoku stands for a forest bath, or enjoying the forest atmosphere in order to relax. Due to the relentless Japanese working culture, the stress levels of Japanese employees was running rampant already then and the forestry department saw a wonderful possibility that would reduce the stress levels of people and increase demand for forest cover needed by the forestry department. And so shinrin yoku / forest bathing was born.The Japanese, who were under the stress of competitive metropolitan life, were lured into the healing atmosphere of the forests to engage in different relaxing activities (Huusko, 2019)."

In particular, conifers are beneficial for reasons that go beyond simple aesthetics:

"Certain trees, like conifers also emit oils and compounds to safeguard themselves from microbes and pathogens. These molecules known as Phytoncides are good for our immunity too. Breathing in the forest air boosts the level of natural killer (NK) cells in our blood. NK cells are used in our body to fight infections, cancers and tumors. So spending time with these trees is a special form of tree bathing"

(https://healingforest.org/2020/01/27/forest-bathing-guide/)

So walking in the woods is simply good for us, body, mind and soul. Trees awaken our senses, restore our spirits, boost our immune systems and provide our planet with life giving oxygen.  

Thank you God, for trees and the restorative power of "forest bathing"!