The Language of Nature

Katy Pelchy
The Language of Nature
Making Nature Sacred

In Making Nature Sacred, there is a passage that expresses how Thoreau sees reading nature as reading a book, where you must only know the language in order to understand it. An example is cited about understanding a bird, and how one must only know the birdsong to hear. I think this is very insightful. There is much to be learned from nature, if one only has the right mindframe to listen. And that is what I think the “language” of nature is: the correct mindframe by which to hear it with. If one is open to learning and understanding any topic, especially nature, then usually significant thoughts follow. But what is there to be learned from a sandstorm? Or a forest stream? Or a grassy hillside? I think there is everything to learn from these things. Some of the most important truths have been discovered by contemplating in nature, and some of the deepest insights have been through observing and “listening” to landscapes. A forest trills about life. A desert blows of perseverance. The arctic whispers loneliness. The jungle screams of diversity. And in each of these settings, there are so many more specific truths to be learned. Again, one only has to know the language of open-mindedness, and has only to be willing to listen.