When was the last time you gave your mind a real break – the kind only nature can offer?
Last Saturday, after a particularly busy day, I noticed a little, squirrel-like critter hopping through the garden. It wasn’t a squirrel. But what was it? My awareness was heightened and curiosity piqued. As still as I could be, I just watched.
What was this critter? About a minute later, it came running through again. It was a stoat carrying something in her mouth! A few minutes later and, again, there she was running back in the direction she came from.
I was fixated. My mind slowed as I focused only on the stoat. There was no noise in my head, no planning, no ruminating thoughts. Just calm, focused and clear headed, and probably the most relaxed I felt in a week.
We are so conditioned to power through that we forget – nature is always inviting us to reset.
Nature teaches us:
- Even a 5-minute break can lower stress hormones.
- Light, natural movement helps restore our mental focus.
- Visual nature cues restore attention faster than screens and scrolling.
Today’s n8tureRx Tip – Step outside for 5 minutes today, with no agenda. except to observe one aspect of nature – a plant, insect, cloud, blade of grass.
Your clearest thinking often begins outdoors. Ready to build a nature habitat that restores you? Let’s explore it together at n8tureRx.
But what about the stoat?
The stoat wasn’t playing or hunting; she was moving her litter of kits to a new location! She ran through a total of 12 times, bringing her entire litter to our home. We were so curious about her behaviour, we researched and learned that stoats will move their litter multiple times for safety reasons and also for better hunting grounds.
We had been working in the garden up to that point, so she knew we were there. Yet she still felt safe enough to use our garden, not just to carry her litter through, but to stay – even if just a short time.
I’m a firm believer that the wildlife near us know we are kind and gentle people, meaning no harm.
When you put out kindness, you reap the benefits in many ways. In this case, there was a clear connection between how we steward our land, how nature benefits, and what we receive in kind.