Attitude of Gratitude for 2017 – December 18, 2017 – Random Acts of Nature
Getting out in nature to capture something unique in the moment brings me back to a happier place.
I took this picture at the end of April on the Eastern side of the Sierra’s. I am calling this one “random acts of nature.” I wasn’t expecting to see this Texas Sage in Northern Nevada in this area where I walk the dogs. I have never seen one there in bloom before. This was not near any path – the dogs and I were bushwacking finding a way up to another path we wanted to get to. I find the best way to experience random acts of beauty in nature is to be out in nature (pretty simple). I’m exceptionally grateful I was out in nature that day to see this rare bush for Northern Nevada (it’s native in the Southwestern US and used ornamentally in gardens).
Several months ago when I was in a funk after my father passed away, I was reading about how surgeries were having far fewer mishaps when they followed a basic start up checklist. I thought, hmm maybe I could be happier if I created a similar checklist for my day rather than wallowing in sadness. My checklist is pretty basic – get out in nature, notice something unique while I’m out (this brings me into the present moment), connect with people I know in a meaningful way, stretch, breathe, take time to meditate, focus on a task to completion, reflect on what happened in my day that went well. Living in the present like this has helped pull me out of the loss of a parent funk. This picture reminds me that how I feel in the moment is a choice and I can change it to something more positive and uplifting by just getting out in nature.
