In Good Company

Both in class and within the works of Nature Writers, nature is often described as a perfect place for absolute solitude. It is a place where one can go to reflect upon life. While there, he may learn more about himself. He may learn about the animals around him. He may even discover a higher power at work.

While I myself have felt the enrichment of nature’s silence, nature can also be experienced with other people. Oftentimes, being in nature with people with whom you are close can be an immensely enjoyable experience.

This recently dawned on me while sitting in a friend’s backyard of all places. We had gathered there before the UT football game to connect with friends and family and enjoy some delicious barbeque. As kickoff drew nearer, we knew we should begin walking to the stadium. Instead, we sank deeper into our fold-up chairs, the kind that decorate the sidelines of every youth soccer game.

The sun was shining and warming our skin. The trees that lined my friend’s backyard boasted their fall colors, a delicacy here in Texas and a gift graciously bestowed from warm weather in early November. A light breeze kept us cool and teasingly reminded me of my Southern California home. Beneath my feet, the soil was soft and covered by a thin layer of grass that was quickly losing its green color with the changing season like hair turning gray with age. With the sweet, thick taste of barbeque still on my lips, I exhaled and said to my friends, “what a peaceful day”.

Since the game had begun, the crowd that had gathered at my friend’s house had largely dispersed. Sitting in a small circle in the yard, my friends and I were the only ones remaining. We were in no rush, relaxing into the peace and beauty of the day. Our conversation flowed with warm and ease, sometimes elevated with laughter and other times diffused into a calm silence.

I have experienced this before in moments surrounding a crackling bonfire and letting the fragrance of burning timber cover my clothes and seep into my hair. If that smell had a texture, it would be rough like sand paper. Then again while sitting atop a boulder in Joshua Tree National Park, eating a sack lunch from a pathetic brown bag and laughing with my peers as we reflected on our treacherous journey to reach the high boulder. We had leapt from boulder to boulder, quickly calculating each distance and the preferred point of contact before taking flight. It may be more accurate to say that we bounded from boulder to boulder with great speed and agility. Having never done such a thing, we were impressed with ourselves and had to laugh.

Both the nature around us and the friendships in front of me worked together to resonate within me a deep sense of joy and gratitude. The benefits of nature can be found in a simple backyard, and they can be enhanced by good friends.