Nature and well-being

For me, nature has always had a healing affect when I am stressed or sad.  But, overall, spending time in nature is very important for happiness and overall wellbeing --a part of one's personal prosperity.  Much has been written on this theme by far better writers than I.  Julie Newton, a scholar from the U.K. put together the following bibliography about wellbeing and nature and I highly recommend that you have a look.  If you google her name and wellbeing and nature, you will also come across a powerpoint presentation by her on "The Impact of Green Spaces on Wellbeing".
 

Wellbeing and the Natural Environment:  A brief overview of the evidence

http://www3.surrey.ac.uk/resolve/seminars/Julie%20Newton%20Paper.pdf

Working in academe, it can get rather hectic during the fall semester so I always consider it a luxury when I have a chance to get out and enjoy my favorite season.  Yesterday, ahead of the tropical depression coming through today, I had such a chance and found it incredibly therapeutic.  Below, I share a few images from my two hour walk with my dog Revi through the woods.  Enjoy.

At a time of year when many things are going dormant, there are still signs of new life as seen with these two tree seedlings that have emerged from the forest floor.

The autumn forest floor #1

Autum forest floor #2

Caryopteris (Blue Mist Shrub)

Aromatic aster (Aster oblongifolius)

Aster with silver-spotted skipper

The rare fringed blue gentian - always a treat to find

We think of reds and golds of the turning leaves and the orange of pumpkins in the patch as fall colors, but there are an amazing array of blues/purples as well in the fall flowers.

It doesn't take much to make a retriever happy!