Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Man is a child of his environment

If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in.” This is a quote by Rachel Carson, the marine biologist and nature writer. It brings up two very important points. One, that children everywhere are born with an innate wonder and curiosity of the natural world and two, that unless that excitement in nature is fostered and cultivated it will fade.
I remember being outside every day after school. We had a large forested area behind my house as I was growing up and I would run out back to imagine new worlds with tree forts and vast kingdoms. During these ventures I would wander around collecting stones, dig and play in the earth, and climb through tall plants and trees. As I grew up, I became entranced in biology eventually seeking a degree in it. The natural world has never lost its magic for me. In class the other day, Clayton White shared the story of a teacher who told his class to go outside during a storm and put their ears against a tree. A small boy wrapped his arms around the large tree and listened to the creaking and groaning of the tree. He said he never forgot how a tree feels in the midst of a storm. This small boy found wonder in nature and through an in tune teacher was able to capture it.
Today however, there is a lack of natural curiosity for the natural world. Children grow up in front of the television or computer. They are constantly plugged into their ipods or cell phones. It is a constant source of entertainment and amusement that continually gratifies. It inundates the brain with a constant barrage of signals that lets in little else. Professor White shared another example of how his wife was trying to speak to their son but was unable to because he was listening to his ipod. He was physically present with them, but mentally was somewhere else. Children today are having their childhood cut short by all the media. Just as in many animals where there is a critical time in their lives that they imprint on their species or learn certain behaviors, I believe it is the same with human children. If they do not experience that natural curiosity when they are young it may be too late to develop it at a later time. I see students all around me that would rather play video or computer games than play a game of frisbee outside or hike a trail. I see my younger brother who spends his waking hours on myspace, his ipod and computer games. The earth is biological and we are biological organisms. We lose a lot when we cannot connect with other biological beings. In the words of Aldo Leopold,“ We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.”

11 comments:

  1. I love this post. I feel the same way and feel very strongly about this issue. I have two perspectives on this issue one from a public health perspective and one from a biological perspective. I strongly believe that access to media has eliminated the desire of children to become aware of their natural surroundings. Children may know about oceans and deserts but the real feeling of smelling the ocean breeze or feeling the desert sun is a foreign concept to many 21 century kids. It really saddens me to see the disconnection between nature and the young population. I also see that media has probably contributed more to poor health in children and adolescents then any other factor. I see elementary school kids that are morbidly obese and their only desire is to play video games. It is something that needs addressing and it falls on our shoulders to change the current situation.

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  2. I can totally relate with this article. Growing up I lived in a ward that loved outdoor activities and scout outings. We would fish, hike, canoe, and camp out all the time. Then we combined wards with another part of town and things changed just a bit. We got a group of kids that only liked to play Halo, hacky sack, finger skate boards, and surf the web. It wasn't there fault they they didn't enjoy the outdoors. They were merely deprived of the opportunity growing up. This ended up being a good transition for me because I was able to go out in the wilderness with these kids and show them how cool and fun the outdoors could be. The lessons didn't always take root, but there was a greater appreciation as a group for the gift of nature.

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  3. Sorry about the type error above...the correct word would be "their" and not "there." That mistake always make me cringe.

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  4. I appreciate you changing that RON. I was about to correct you if you hadn't caught it yourself. :) I think there are a few reasons that kids don't get outside as much anymore. For one thing, the toys they have are really, REALLY cool. Let's be honest here. Second, times have changed. When I was growing up, my parents hardly even asked where I was going. My friends and I were seven and eight years old and we would be gone all day. We had to be home for dinner or else, but I remember playing in ponds, romping through the woods, and catching critters all day. Now, people are scared that their kids are going to be kidnapped...and for valid reasons, but I believe that is definitely a correlation between the amount of time spent inside versus outside. Parent's didn't instill that in their children at an early enough age, so good luck prying your 14 year old girl away from her cell phone and the computer.

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  5. growing up it was my responsibility to feed the chickens and pigs every morning. i absolutely hated those animals haha. i hated them because i would often step in their smelly poop but in actuality i loved growing up on our small urban farm. every saturday i would be woken up with a call from my dad and sent to the fax machine where a list of chores would arrive. it was always hard work but saturdays i was out with the animals, cutting the grass, cleaning stalls and loading feed. the physicality of my work and the time to ponder is where decisions about work ethic, and aspirations in working hard were formed. the mind numbing effect of media rarely has such tangible benefits and moreover has quite an opposite effect.

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  6. While I agree that we are biological beings, and that a part of us suffers when we do not connect with other biological things, I find your sweeping accusations against technology to be overbearing. Life is about establishing a balance. We need to have nature, but we also live in a world where we need technology to function. MySpace and iPod addictions are certainly wrong, but watching a movie or listening to music every now and then is nothing to condemn.

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  7. I think that there is validity in some worry about the current trends in society. It is true that people play outside less, that parents have more (and I believe justified) fear for thier children, and the "toys" are a lot more gratifying. I don't believe that the problem is just with children not taking an intrest in the outdoors or with parents who don't force their children to partake of nature. Perhaps the greatest problem and tragedy lies with the values of our current society. If parents didn't have to work all the time (or didn't choose to), or if there was more than one child in a family to play together, or if people even lived in semi-close proximity to nature things would change. It simply isn't valued anymore to have a garden, cultivte your own land, deal with animals, or take the time to go exploring. It is costly if you live in a city to take advantage of nature and go camping or fishing or hunting becasue we have imposed licenses and taxes and fees on EVERYTHING. As a society we are making it neerly impossible in some ways to do what we have all professed to need. Perhaps the answer is to rearrange priorities, take the job that pays less, farm more and reinvest in nature and the family experience.

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  8. I think this post is a little unfair to the media and things "non-biological." I have a friend that is addicted to camping and hiking. It doesn't carry the same social black spot as excessive television watching, but it is taking a toll on his life all the same.

    However, I do agree that we need to develop a relationship with our environment in order to understand it and act as stewards.

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  9. I agree that children are not getting out enough but it is not the child's fault. The blame often resides with the parents and the environment that the children are placed in or the lack of taking the children out to nature. Parents who complain about their children on the ipod constantly like Prof. White should blame themselves for allowing that behavior to develop and become habit.

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  10. It's interesting to see how this class has made me think about this issue a lot more. I never really thought of myself as nature-deprived until I started thinking about it. I do think that computers and television are partly to blame for the general lack of interaction with nature, but I also think that parents and teachers are responsible for instilling nature values. I remember when my parents would limit my screen time, or my teachers would take us out to the playground to observe the weather. These small interactions led me to have a deeper appreciation for sitting and watching the clouds or for running barefoot in the grass.

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  11. I picked this blog to write on in the final because I can really relate to your experiences and I share your views.
    I know that my love for nature stems from the relationship I formed with it when I was younger.
    I hope that I can help my children learn to love and appreciate the earth and the beauty and mystery that it holds.
    Thanks for your blog! And your comments in class!

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