Thinking Out Loud 1 ~ Starting Point

Thinking out loud...


Nature is my decided "starting point", but that's so ridiculously vague - I could take that absolutely any way I wanted to. I suppose what I mean by "nature" is what we embrace to be natural, outside, self sufficient and uninfluenced by ourselves (as much as possible). Wild trees, wild flowers, leaves, the seasons - landscapes, rivers, ponds, forests, mountains, rocks, and the creatures that live among them. The things that, without us, would still be here. The sky, the moon, the sun and all the stars and planets amongst them.

As humans, we interact with what surrounds us in very strange ways. We love nature. We want it as much as possible. We want fresh flowers in our homes, beautiful trees in our gardens, natural decorations such as rocks (crystals, geodes) on our shelves. We want everything to smell like nature, whether that is fresh flower scents or an ocean breeze freshener, and if we can, we want nature to live with us. (Fish, birds, rabbits, cats, dogs - I am more than sure that there would be so many more types of household pets if it was ethical/legal. Who wouldn't want a pet tiger, or monkey?)

"Bluebell Babies"
henna tattoo special request
(henna is the temporary art of
staining skin with a
traditional Indian paste)

We decorate everything from clothing to wallpaper with flowers and animal print, and generally, we want nothing more than to escape to a more peaceful place on a holiday (or forever, if we can). Many of us dream of a home by the sea, or far away in a forest away from civilisation. Perhaps we will wish to drift off with the mermaids or the fairies, to live a simpler life beneath the waves or amongst the toadstools.

I recently spoke to an older woman who struggles to walk, and gets by with a cocktail of pills each day. From what I know, she has a very comfortable life, surrounded by those who love her and living a full life despite her illness. Despite this, as I sat and iced her hand with henna, she confessed that she would leave right that second and live in the forest if she could (with the "bluebell babies and the ferns"). Talking about it made her excitable, and a tiny mistake I made inspired her. A smudge, in her eyes, turned into a raindrop. Although I was the artist, I left feeling that she had inspired me.

It is very strange to me that despite our thousands of years of mechanical evolution and ingenuity, we crave the things that have always been available to us. We fantasise and ignore the hardships of a would-be life in the wild, as long as we are amongst the beauty of it. It's lovely to think about, sometimes, in an age where technology seems to override all that we know.
To think of somebody (anybody) stopping to acknowledge a flower, or an insect, or the clouds in the sky. To put down their phone or tablet and allow themselves to acknowledge what is around them. It's good for the soul. It does not have to be shared, and probably never would be anyway. But that fleeting few moments of a butterfly's wings flapping, or a bird's song, is a personal moment bound to bring a wave of calm. I will admit that I find myself often lost in nature. Especially the sky. The ethereal movement of the clouds, and how they wisp and change colour with the movement of the sun. A red sky can completely capture me, and I find myself thinking just how much life is worth living just because of the beauty within it.

(..... which is very stupid, really, because they're just clouds! but I feel blessed to be able to feel and appreciate the little things so vividly)

On the other hand...

Despite this, and despite the infinite love we may have for nature, and the infinite desire we have to be close to it...
All we do is destroy it.

The big factories, the litter, the air pollution, the ocean pollution, the fumes, the smog, the acid rain, the waste, the nuclear waste, the global warming, the ice caps melting, the bees declining, the waters rising...

😌 

We idolise the freedom that we had hundreds of years ago, that we have since worked so hard to limit. The thousands of great minds that have blessed us with technology, societal structure and modern life, have also completely severed our ties to the real world (the real real world) and how it was originally created. How we used to survive as humans is a distant memory, as we have slotted into a functioning society. Individuals being the parts to a well oiled machine. This is (debatably) beneficial to many of us as humans, but not quite as pleasant for the nature in our wake. The damage we have done, and continue to do, is visible and very clear. (but somehow, ignored, and irrelevant.)  It is now only a select few, and the animals amongst them, that are left to live a blissfully unaware, undocumented life in the wildlife that has always been here.

At least, what is left of it after we have used it.

I am fully aware of just why we have evolved in this way, and I acknowledge just how much more difficult our lives would be if it wasn't for the way we live. At least, how much more physically taxing it would be, to have to fend for ourselves and our own families day in day out, fighting for food, warmth and territory.
Selfishly, I am glad to live in the existence that I do. I have the time to explore the environments around me, with the promise of a warm home to return to. Much like everyone else, I turned a blind eye to many of the happenings of the world up until recently. Those of us who care are perfectly capable of caring for the little wildlife that is left, and although we are few, each small victory is a victory regardless. Perhaps it is the fact that wildlife is so scarce and difficult to attain that makes it so desirable.
I accept the way we live, but I will not deny that it is selfish, self destructive and we are on nothing but a time bomb until something truly awful happens.



... Having written much more than I ever intended to on this subject, I'll leave it on that note. But it was good to get the cogs rolling, and now I'm excited to see what art I can create from this subject. ~ Sian 🌙