Sep
30
You don’t have to make a big deal of this. A short trip in the car over the weekend will probably bring you closer to nature than you’ve been in a long time.
Pack up your car with the gear you’ll need. You can probably borrow it from a friend if you don’t have the basics. You can get away with a sleeping bag, tent, cooler, stove, and lantern or flashlight. You don’t need anything else. Regardless of where you live, there are campgrounds within a few hours’ drive.
Once you’re among the trees, birds, stars, and the silence, set up camp and allow yourself to start to unwind. Slow down the pace. Find your spot in the wilderness. Take note of how delicious food tastes when you’ve cooked it yourself over a stove in the outdoors. Even a cheese sandwich or freeze-dried soup will take on a different flavor when you eat it away from your normal habitat.
Take your time with everything you do. Feel the slower, more deliberate rhythm of nature. Before you slide into your sleeping bag, look at the stars, and then quietly turn out your lantern and drift off into dream land.
When you awake, make a hot beverage to warm you up as the sun slowly makes its mark on the day.