- With all that is happening in America and the world, I put my thoughts into words and hope STO readers enjoy this and go and spend time outdoors by themself.
By Larry Whiteley
Sometimes, a feeling comes over me, and I know I must get away by myself to a place where I cannot do anything but relax and think. A place away from negative news of riots, illegal aliens, wars, and all the other bad stuff going on in the world.
I have no problem being by myself. I enjoy it. As a kid growing up on the farm, I spent a lot of time by myself out hunting squirrels or fishing in the creek. I also had a special tree I liked to climb. In its comforting limbs, I would daydream.
One of my special, by-myself places was lying in the hay in the barn loft and listening to rain hitting the old tin roof. I also had a secret place deep in the woods where I built a tiny cabin with limbs and mud. The roof was an old piece of tin. I took my BB gun with me to fight off Indians or German soldiers.
When I got older, Fall was, and still is, my favorite time to be by myself outdoors. It was hunting time. I was in tree stands and blinds hunting deer, turkeys, and ducks. I marveled at the kaleidoscope of colors that surrounded me. I enjoyed the cool nip in the air.
I walked in the woods and fields by myself in the Spring while I searched for mushrooms and turkeys. During the Summer, I would find a creek that few people knew about and do some fishing. Sometimes I would take my clothes off and go for a swim or I would catch crawdads to fish with or boil up and eat. At night, I would go gigging for frogs along its banks.
When Winter came, I would leave the warmth of home and venture outdoors into a winter wonderland of freshly fallen snow. I loved to follow the tracks of the animals that lived in the fields and forests. I would hike through the hills and marvel at icicles hanging from the rock bluffs and beautiful frost flowers created by the cold air and moisture from weeds and plants. Once you see them, you will never forget them.
After I married, we had kids, and I passed on to them what I had learned and experienced from all the time I had spent doing things by myself. I told them that being with family and friends is very important. So is time by themselves. It is for all of you reading this. It can change and shape your life.
Our kids are married now and have grown kids of their own. They enjoy fishing, hunting, camping, and hiking together. They also know the value and importance of finding time by themselves.
I get up every morning, every season of the year, and go outdoors. I sit and watch the sunrise and talk to God. Birds come into our feeders. Squirrels look for acorns. Rabbits nibble on the grass. I sip my coffee and enjoy the show. When evening arrives, I am out there again enjoying the sunset or the moonrise. I thank God for how he has blessed me.
That urge to be by myself, I have done so many times in my life, is coming on again. It has been building for a few months, and I must go. To a valley, by a creek, surrounded by wooded hills. Maybe I will take my fishing rod. Maybe I will take my hiking shoes. Maybe I will take my camera. Maybe I will take my tent and camp on a hill where I can see the beautiful country around me. Maybe I will take a hammock and hang it between two trees. Maybe, I will take a book. Maybe I will work on a story like this one.
For breakfast, I will fry bacon and eggs in a skillet over a campfire. Lunch will be snack food. For dinner, I will take some potatoes to fry in that skillet or wrap in foil and bake in that campfire. I will catch fish to go along with some potatoes. If I don’t catch any fish, I will eat just potatoes.
None of that matters much. Each of us will have our own ideas of what we need and where we want to go to spend some time alone. We need to keep it simple for this to work for us. Most importantly, do not take too much of anything and do it alone.
I will fish a little. Lie around. Read. Gather some firewood. Go for a swim in the creek. Lie around. Contemplate what it was like when Indians or settlers were there. Look at cloud shapes. Lie around. Listen to the water flowing and wonder where it goes on its journey. Skip rocks. Look for arrowheads. Take a nap. Build a campfire. Look at the stars and thank God for what He has done in my life. Thank Him for my family, my church, and all that He has created for me to enjoy all these years, and what few years I have left.
My mind will be free to drift where it will, thinking about things that matter a lot. To think about things that matter very little. It is easier to do all that when you are alone, away from this crowded and broken world we all live in today.
It is much easier to think objectively about life, marriage, children, grandchildren, friends, goals, dreams, and God when you focus mostly on the sky, trees, the land around you, and flowing water.
There is much to be said about finding time in this busy world for a little solitary time away from crowded roads with bumper-to-bumper traffic. Time away from television screens, computer screens, and smartphone screens. It helps you get acquainted with yourself again. Get down to the essentials of life. Enjoy getting to know yourself again. Discovering who you are.
You will know when the time is right for you. A time when you need to escape somewhere. A place to get away to where your soul and mind can be free to roam for a while. It may not be the way I do it. It may be a quiet time at a park, on your porch, or in your backyard. Being outdoors when you do it is an essential factor in making this work.
Wherever it is, whenever it is, find a time to be by yourself.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
I wondered why places are so much lovelier when one is alone.
– Daphne du Maurier