The view of the Cimarron and San Juan Mountain ranges was postcard beautiful as we drove by. I grabbed a moment of attention for them, but then returned to my focus to our conversation. My friend and I were deep in the plot of sharing our stories from the past weeks. Personal joys, family events, complex dramas in an organization. We arrived at the Dallas Creek trailhead and I lingered in the truck for a moment. I had one more thing I needed to say. We stepped out of the truck, and as we closed the door to the truck we closed the door to our conversation.
This is our agreement for our monthly hiking day. While we’re driving in the truck any conversation topic is fair game. As soon as we exit the truck the Here and Now is the only topic we allow for our conversation. A fair amount of our hiking time we spend in silence.
Why do we do this? We have four reasons.
#1 The restorative powers of nature
Reason number one is to receive the full benefit of the restorative powers of nature.
As long as we feel relatively safe, we relax and turn on our parasympathetic nervous system. Our blood pressure lowers and our heart reaches a relaxed state, our digestive and immune system come into action.
The type of relaxed attention we give to nature gives our brain a needed break. If we were to take an EEG test measuring our brain activity after the hike we would see that our brain was in a relaxed state.
Nature-focused hikes restore our body and brain to increased well-being.
What does conversation have to do with this restorative power?
We only receive these benefits from nature if our attention is on nature. Research studies show that if we continue to focus on subjects outside of nature, by say – talking on a cell phone to someone at a distance during our hike, we will not experience the restorative benefits of the hike.
Our body systems are heavily influenced by our thoughts. If our thoughts are in one place and our body is in another place, our body will tend to listen to our thoughts and act accordingly.
To receive the restorative powers of nature we have to pay attention to being in nature.
#2 The hazards of multitasking
The second reason we limit our conversation to the Here and Now world of nature is because of the problem of multitasking. 98% of us are lousy multitaskers. I’m definitely one of these. When we multitask we are not paying attention to two things at once, multi-tasking it’s a matter of switching attention. This constant switching of attention is tiring for our brains and creates Inattentional Blindness.
On our drive up I gave my attention to our conversation and basically missed the whole sensational mountain view. If we were to continue that conversation throughout the hike – and we certainly had enough material to continue – l would basically miss the whole nature experience.
One research study showed that when folks took a walk in nature while having a conversation about something else, they remembered only half as much about the nature around them as folks who did not converse during their hike. When they multi-tasked, they missed half.
I frankly think my memory percentage would be considerably lower than half.
On our monthly hike my friend and I limit our conversation to the Here and Now so that I can experience and remember the Here and Now as fully as possible.
#3 To cultivate awe and delight
The third reason we limit our conversation to the Here and Now is that I love the emotions of awe and delight. The more I pay attention to the natural world the greater the odds are that I will run into them. I cannot imagine how many moments of awe and delight I have missed in my life simply because I was not paying attention. When I’m in nature it feels like these emotions are hiding around almost every corner. If I pay enough attention, I will catch them.
#4 To connect with God
The fourth reason we limit our conversation to our current location, and include a great deal of silence, is because when we close the truck door we intentionally enter into another conversation.
A conversation with the Creator of nature in the very midst of that artistic creation.
When I walk in nature I feel like I’m on a personal tour with the artist through their extraordinary exhibit.
Christians use two books to get to know God better, Scripture and God’s first book: creation.
I use my walks in nature to connect with God.
I invite you to join me in a Soul Sculpting Project to cultivate your own well-being and connection with God.
Soul Sculpting Project: 5 Minutes of Relaxed Attention in Nature
For five minutes
- Get out into nature
- Pay full attention
Is 5 minutes enough?
- Ten studies found that getting outside and moving for five minutes improved both mood and self-esteem.
Note: This group of studies included movement- so you might want to move around a bit in your 5 minutes.
On this particular hike up the Dallas Creek Trail my biggest awe moment was the view. The mountain ranges I had missed on the drive were in vivid clarity, the San Juans close by and the Cimarrons a bit further off. I also took delight in the towering, vibrantly colored thistles.
I have etched portions of the hike into my long-term memory.
At the conclusion of the hike my body and brain felt refreshed. I am grateful for the gift of the day.
Researchers on the topic of well-being and nature are beyond my ability to number. I am grateful for all of them. Here are three of the many I have used for this project: David Strayer Ph.D, Robin Mejia, Yoshifumi Miyazaki .
soulsculpting 