JOURNAL 4 - My Spot in Nature

For this assignment, I had to choose a spot in nature and visit it 6 times with each time a different task to fulfill. 

1. Orientation & Observation 

Unfortunately, I can't add a video to this, however, you have to watch that first before continuing this blog. If you go to videos on this website it should be the first video that pops up. It is called "Vlog about my spot in nature." Don't worry, it's under a minute long. 

Watch the video first before you continue reading. 

Cassidy posted a picture of this place she was at. I found it very pretty from only what I saw on the picture and asked if she wanted to bring me there. We drove out of Ellensburg, I believe on Canyon Road along a mountain. It felt like there wasn't gonna be an end to the road, and there wasn't, the Umptanum Recreation Area was along the road so I have to go drive the road myself one day to find out what's on the other side. Once we stepped out of the car I walked over a bridge into some different trails. One trail led me to my spot, I instantly knew that this was it. There where bushes and trees everywhere. I don't really have any knowledge about plants or trees, all the leaves were on the ground since its midwinter right now and you could clearly see a walking path made by humans who have hiked there. I wasn't surprised I didn't see any animals there cause of that. 

 

On the way back we saw some chickens walking around and I say sagebrush --> I never heard of it before this class and now it keeps following me everywhere.

2. Intimacy 

Close your eyes and use only my hearing/touch/smell.

I noticed so many things: a couple of birds chirping, the wind going through the leaves, I was afraid of insect walking all over me since I sat down and was feeling the ground I was sitting on through my fingers, the scent was just like nature, it smelled like plants and trees, but the thing that stood out for me most was the sound that the waves made in the river. It was so peaceful to listen to, I don't even know how long I was sitting there listening to only the waves. People that walked by must have thought I was meditating (or homeless). I opened my eyes a little bit and sat closer to the river. Closing my eyes again I felt the water with my fingertips. I immediately got goosebumps because of the cold. As my whole hands and a little bit of my wrist touched the water I felt how strong the waves actually were. The feeling was very unnatural if you can't see it, it kinda felt like all my problems and stress were taken away by the water running through my fingers (I sound like a hippie now lol). Focusing on the sound again, I heard the water running over the rock and a large limb of a tree that was stuck. Opening my eyes hurt a little bit, going from such darkness to full sunlight, but it was still as peaceful as with my eyes closed.

3. Knowledge 

Pick one thing in my place and make notes on it.

For me, it wasn't hard to pick a plant I hadn't any knowledge of since I don't know anything about plants or trees. I went back again with Cassidy and we found this beautiful flower. The first thing I thought when I saw it was if it also lives during spring or summer and what it looks like then. 

Back home I looked up the flower. It is a Dried Scottish Thistle. I have no idea what that means so I looked it up on Wikipedia. The prickles on the margins and the stem are for protection against herbivores, very smart if you think about it. Apparently, this thistle has been the national emblem for Scotland, makes sense given the name. The name can be found in several Scottish football club titles and the flower is a symbol of police services in Scotland. I've never actually been to Scotland and don't follow soccer, so I wouldn't know. It became the national emblem for Scotland when the Scottish and the Norse (old North Germanic people) were in a fight or war. One night the Norse army was going sneak up on the Scottish army, however, a barefoot Norse stepped on the Thistle which made him cry out of pain. The Scottish heard this and got alarmed by it. Interestingly if you ask me, I wonder if it really happened or if it's just a made-up story. 

I was right about the flower living in spring and summer as well and it looks beautiful. It is purple and looks fully alive. Just like Douglas said, there is live upon looking. 

4. Perspective 

Imagine being one of the constants in my place and write what it might be like to watch me. 

Doing this assignment kinda made me feel really bad about going back there. I went back to the spot where I found the Dried Scottish Thistle and saw some more. This is what I would've thought if I were the flowers; "There is she again, the one that just took our mom, killed her and just left us here without our mother." I could imagine them hating me, just like all the other flowers, plants, animals. I am just one of those humans that help kill the nature with all of their technology, plastic, gas, etc. 

5. Interconnectedness 

What kinds of human-nature connections do I see? 

Before doing this assignment I had already noticed a lot of human-nature connections. Going back I focused on it extra. As I said in my video, that you didn't watch, thanks for that Matt, a lot of people walk by there everyday. There are footsteps everywhere. I don't really care about those, if people treat nature how they should treat it. However, looking beyond the trail, I found some soda cans and some plastic from food papers. I really can't stand people that just let their trash wander around and not just take it with them when they leave. 

I think the bridge is the biggest example of a human-nature connection. Build by human, nonetheless, plants are starting to grow up on the base of the bridge. A real human-nature connection. Build by human but slowly taken over by the plants. 

I don't think there is a strict line between natural and unnatural. I don't know what it's called but its more like --> Natural, Mostly Natural, In the Middle, Little Natural, Unnatural. You know what I mean lol. I definitely think the bridge could become more natural over time if no human will work on it again. With that I mean that if the bridge starts to break down, eventually it will be more plant than metal or whatever it is made off. Same thing with the cans, eventually it will break down. One time it came from nature, and the way nature breaks it down will make it be part of it again. 

6. Conclusions 

Like i have said before, I would never call a place, plants, trees, animals, or anything else in nature my friend. Though, I have definitely a connection to my place, but I'm not sure if that is because of this assignment, or because of I already liked it from the beginning. The first time I was there it already gave me a very calm and relaxed feeling, but then again, not only that place gives me that, a lot of places in nature do. I just never really have time to actually hike or just go to nature and relax. I remember being on top of the lava rock in Fall in at Umtanum Creek Falls and not wanting to leave. I had nothing else to do that day, it was great. My fellow hikers wanted to leave after a bit, I remember being upset cause I never wanted to leave that place, feeling and view. 

I learned some about nature, though. I recognized some sagebrush from Douglas' essay and I learned something about the Thistle flower. I am happy that I got to go to nature more often while doing this assignment. I love being in nature, and now I really had to make time for it which I'm very thankful for. However, I didn't really change the way I do and see things. I already highly appreciated all the small things in my life and I feel like that was one of the points in this assignments. I also already highly enjoyed being in nature, and appreciate nature very much. 

I would make an ending video as well, just like I did in the beginning, but if you aren't even gonna watch it, never-mind I guess ;).