Week of November 10, 2024 – November 16, 2024
by Catherine McLaughlin, Environmental Educator
Do you have a calendar? Not the calendar we typically use with days of the week and holidays to keep track of the time passing, but one in tune with nature’s cycles? I do. One of those natural moments that I appreciate that doesn’t come with a date is when the crows congregate in fall. I start to hear their calls and notice their large groups (or murders) flying as I walk my dog when I arrive home in the evening. It typically starts mid-October, almost at the peak of when the leaves change color and ends once the trees are bare.
I’ve grown to appreciate what arrives each season. Nature works with the seasons to be most successful. Right now you see the squirrels going crazy hiding food for the upcoming winter months. Animals reproduce during certain times of the year for the best success for their young. Plants grow in spring as the weather warms and the sun is out for longer periods of time.
As humans we should be more in tune with nature than we are. We have changed into a society where we work year round and get whatever food we want at the store. However, people still do things seasonally. Have you gone pumpkin or apple picking in the past few months? Perhaps you notice you are craving different fattier foods that would help to keep you warm during the winter months. Our bodies are looking to prepare for a hard winter, just like the squirrels are preparing for the upcoming months. It’s interesting to see how even though we may not need to prepare as the wildlife does, our bodies are almost hardwired to prepare for winter months.
As nature prepares for the cold I hope you take the time to think about what you notice each season. Do you look forward to when house finches come to your yard in the evening during the month of August, or the call of frogs as the ice starts to melt in March, or the swarms of snow geese? Observing what nature repeats each year can help you connect with what you see every day. We don’t need to look at the date to know what is happening. Our bodies know what to prepare for already just as birds know when to fly and squirrels know when to hoard food.