Nature Connection: Window Watching

There are times in our lives when watching out our windows may be the closest way we can get to nature. Trapped indoors by illness or injury, we still need to see the sky, feel and smell the fresh air, and hear the sounds of winds, birds and trees talking to each other on the sly. Even with today’s reliance on modern medicine, nature is still one of our best healers.

Many societies, old and new, have known that fresh air is good for health. So is clean water and uncontaminated, fresh food. Imagine if all hospital rooms allowed patients or their families to open windows for at least a little while. It might help even the deathly ill feel connected to the earth, or perhaps they will dream of flying free among the stars.

For those of us used to being outdoors as much as possible, being stuck inside is difficult if not torturous. Those of us here on the Cape are lucky in that most of us can see trees and sky when we look out the window. Some of us might see the sea or a pond or river. There are those with amazing gardens and those with only tiny plots of overgrown grass. Each holds a whole universe that we can enjoy if we give it a chance.

Having a bird feeder is one way to enjoy nature from our windows. In some communities bird feeding is being banned because it attracts rodents as well as birds. Of course they also attract the predators of rodents, but let’s not let the facts get in the way of the rants. If you live in one of these communities, do know you can plant many things that will continue to attract the birds you love. Just do a little homework. Think native plants, and you’ll have your birds back pretty quickly. You’ll also get butterflies, bees and other amazing creatures.

Winter may seem like a tough time to look out the window. It’s gray and dreary and depressing, right? It doesn’t have to be. Hopefully you have some evergreens around. Native hollies, cedars and pines all do well and feed many different species. Being evergreen, they stay cheerfully colorful all the year round, offering food and shelter to many birds and mammals.

As a child I spent many weeks sick in bed looking out my second story window. There was a big tree outside that window, and I considered the squirrels and birds that visited the branches of that tree to be my little friends. It was during those years of battling illness that I became a nature lover, reading everything I could, drawing pictures of my favorites, and watching the lives of the birds and animals unfold in the branches just a few feet away from me, separated only by a thin sheet of glass. My mother believed in the healing powers of fresh air, and the seasonal fragrances of that tree through the seasons is with me still.

For many people, especially as they get older, walking on the uneven and sometimes treacherous trails they once loved becomes harder. There are many places where one can still walk on even ground, but most involve asphalt. This is better than nothing, of course, and can make walking predictable and safe, but look for other areas that are flat and have natural paths that are made of packed earth and easy to walk on. Making actual contact with the earth is good for us, mentally, physically, and even spiritually.

Watching nature out a window may not seem ideal, but like walking on manmade materials like asphalt, it is better than not being able to do it at all. I see many people sitting in cars and trucks at the beach. Some are there every day with their papers, their coffees, their snacks, even their lunches. They watch the waves come in and out, follow the clouds as they race across the sky, and laugh at the antics of the gulls trying to figure out which vehicle will be the best bet to harass for treats. Are these folks getting the same benefit as those of us walking in the brisk winter winds? Maybe not but maybe. 

Many have their windows open a bit, so they are feeling the air and hearing the sounds of the waves, the birds, and the wind. They are calmed or energized by the sea, and for many, I think, a certain peace is to be found just in sitting and watching.

If you are caring for someone who is sick, perhaps find a way for them to be near a window. Even in a city one can find things to watch. It may be a pigeon or a neighbor’s cat, but it’s a touch of reality, a way out of the sick room for a little bit. Open the window and let them hear and feel and smell. So often those who are sick are surrounded by well-meaning folks who forget the only things their beloveds are seeing, smelling and feeling are reminders of their illness. Not everyone loves flowers or plants, but if they are not allergic, by all means bring them near. Not only are they beautiful, but they bring added oxygen to the room as well.

As winter begins to settle in, make yourself a cozy spot by a window. Have a cup of tea or coffee there and watch to see what happens. In the beginning it may not appear that anything at all is going on, but don’t give up, keep watching. You never know what will show up and maybe that squirrel that buried all the acorns in the late summer will return looking for them and give you a wink as he does so.