"Want Better Health? Go Outside," read the headline in a recent Next Avenue article. The author, Elizabeth Marglin, summarized some of the recent research on the benefits of spending time in natural settings.
Natural settings not only lower our stress levels, they encourage us to get up and move, may help lessen depression, and other forms of mental distress.
Anyone who walks a dog in the city knows that getting out and about increases your opportunities to socialize with friends and neighbors. This interaction also has a positive impact on our mental health.
For city dwellers, parks are our connection with nature, but every year these retreats become less serene and peaceful. Sitting or walking in the Boston Public Garden should be a restful experience.
Both of these photos were taken in the early morning when the park is at its peaceful best. Unfortunately, if you need a break in the middle of they day, your peace will be interrupted by the sounds of people using the space as an entertainment space. Their sounds will be imposed on everyone within earshot.
As special interest group, after special interest group make their case on why they should do what they want in any given space, the only group being ignored are those who want a few protected, passive places to relax, sit on a bench, read, hold a conversation, study, draw, do yoga or Tai Chi in a natural setting, or just chill.
We need fewer events, more enforcement of existing rules, and some areas set aside as protected, passive spaces. Then we can all use the magic of nature as part of our healthy living routines.
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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino
class with him many years ago and have kept up with his work at Harvard and MGH and read a number of