The cure for 'Nature Deficit Disorder'

Last summer, Frank and I spent three weeks in the British Virgin Islands learning to sail at the Black Boaters Summit (www.honeyletstravel.com). Besides the new skills we acquired hoisting and trimming sails to take best advantage of the wind, we also had to learn to plot a course using a compass and nautical charts. To improve our abilities at
navigation, we're taking a basic astronomy class this spring.

These events opened up the world even more to me. Before we traveled out west, I thought I knew what the earth looked like -- the tropical hills in Jamaica looked much like the lush Florida landscape to which I'd migrated. But when I saw the earth sculpted into shimmering pyramids and temples at the Badlands in South Dakota; delicate as a scab over the superheated core of Yellowstone, and impenetrably hard in the streaked rock formations of Zion, I knew the earth as a living, breathing entity. Now, tuning into the cosmic dance of the solar bodies, I feel the same sense of connection to something infinitely greater than myself.

Growing up with a healthy dose of freedom in the outdoors, I didn't realize that I was forming the most important connection of all. Feeling comfortable with nature enables me to stay tuned in to the larger world and enjoy a state of constant delight. There is nowhere I can be that I'm not noticing a butterfly, the flowers blooming, birds in flight or a beam of sunlight. So it is enlightening that a popular new book, "Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder," suggests that children's declining exposure to nature over the past 30 years may contribute to many of today's physical and emotional problems. The same may be true of adults and communities.

Fortunately, it is easy for us to redress this "disorder." Near every community in the U.S. is a city, county or state park, a National Wildlife Refuge (www.fws.gov/refuges/) a national park, (www.nps.gov,) a US forest (www.fs.fed.us) or several other categories of public lands. These lands are paid for with tax dollars to promote citizens' recreation and enjoyment. They offer a range of activities including sightseeing, nature walks, birdwatching, biking, hiking, and picnicking. Entrance for a carload is less than the price of a movie ticket.

Listen to the people in this issue enjoying public lands from South Florida to Hawaii, and you'll get just a glimpse of what you've been missing.