IGNITE YOUR LIFE
“Commune with nature.” by Sarah Gish
“C
ommune with nature.” is the fourth way to ignite your life in my “IGNITE YOUR LIFE!” art project and community campaign (www.IgniteYourOwnLife. com) and the word associated with this concept is “COMMUNE.” I especially like this one since “commune” is such a rich word: it can mean “connect,” “community,” and “be in silence with.” All of those are good things indeed. But this month I want to focus on being in silence with and connecting to nature. We are of nature so it seems strange to have to even tell ourselves to connect to nature! Isn’t it obvious that we need to do that?! Well, no. Sadly, most of us spend our days connected
to our electronic devices – maybe sometimes more than each other. I’m typing this on a computer upon which I spend several hours each day. I don’t get out in nature as many hours as I compute! But as I write this, I’m realizing that’s something I need to do more (Join me! After you read this article, put it down, and run outside…or to a park…or the beach. And I promise to do the same!). Back in 2005, journalist and author Richard Louv coined the phrase “nature-deficit disorder” in his best-selling book, Last Child in the Woods. A few years later, he had this to say: “Nature-deficit disorder is not a formal diagnosis, but a way to describe the psychological, physical, and cognitive costs of human alienation from nature, particularly for children in their vulnerable developing years.” (Psychology Today, January 2009). He felt hopeful that we could overcome this condition with careful attention to our activities and conscious efforts to be one with the woods. He was also buoyed by Obama’s support of environmental initiatives. Getting back to nature involves people at ALL levels – parents, adults, kids, governments. With the new administration declaring that they will dismantle the Environmental Protection Agency, it’s now more important than ever to keep an eye on green politics. So, how do we bring nature back into our own lives and that of our children’s? It’s recommended that we spend at least 30 minutes outside every day – and as parents, we must do this ourselves so we can be a good example. Research has found the benefits of nature communing include increased short-term memory, improved concentration, resistance to cancer, and much more.
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farmers’markets SATURDAY DAILY
Canino Produce and Farmer’s Market. 6am-8pm (except Thanksgiving and Christmas) Over 20,000 square feet of Texas produce. Canino Produce and Farmer’s Market 2520 Airline, 77009. 713-862-4027 caninoproduce.com Last Organic Outpost Harvest. Mon-Sat 9am-6pm (except during extreme cold or rainy weather). Come and get your hands in the dirt. Help with the work of the garden and harvest your share for FREE. Last Organic Outpost, 711 Emile Street, 77020. 832-422-8407 www.lastorganicoutpost.com *On Sundays, the LOO is closed but you can find us at East End's Farmers Market from 10am-2pm!!* NuWaters Food Co-Op. 11am-7pm Mon-Sat. 1-5pm Sun. We are a retail food cooperative located in the area currently known as Midtown and historically known as the 3rd Ward. Our store is in the historic old Eldorado Ball Room building. We provide fresh food to a community recently identified as a food desert. NuWaters is a fresh twist on a very old idea. We are not recreating the wheel, we are dusting off the wheel and using it again. We invite you to join us on this journey to community and food wholeness. NuWaters Food Co-Op 2320 Elgin, 77004. NuWatersCo-Op.com
TUESDAY
Spring Branch Farmer’s Market. 2-6pm. Unitarian Fellowship of Houston, 1504 Wirt Road, 77055. facebook.com/ springbranchfarmersmarkethouston Rice University Farmer’s Market. 3:30pm-6:30pm. Rice University, Entrance 13B off of Greenbriar Dr, 5600 Greenbriar 77005. farmersmarket.rice.edu/ Rawfully Organic Food Co-Op. 1-4pm for volunteer hours. 4-7pm for pick-up. Houston Arboretum, 4501 Woodway Dr., 77024. You must order your shares by 9pm Monday in order to pick up on Tuesday. Rawfullyorganic.com
Eastside Urban Harvest Farmer’s Market. 8am-12n. 3000 Richmond at Eastside, 77098. urbanharvest.org The Farm Stand at Petrol Station. 9am-1pm. Petrol Station, 938 Wakefield Dr., 77018. 713.957.2875 http:// bit.ly/1oD6m8F The Woodlands Farmer’s Market at Grogan’s Mill. 8am-12n. 7 Switchbud Place, Spring, 77380. grogansmillvillage.com Farmer’s Market on Grand Parkway. 8am-12n. Church of the Holy Apostles, 1225 W. Grand Parkway, Katy, 77494. farmersmarketongrandparkway.com Heights Epicurean Farmer’s Market. 8:30am-1:30pm. First Saturdays only. Grace UMC, 1245 Heights Blvd., 77008. HeightsEpicurean.com Memorial Villages Farmers Market. 9am-1pm. First Congregational Church, 10840 Beinhorn Rd. 77024. http://bit.ly/1YfwDWD Farmer’s Market at Imperial. 9am-1pm. 198 Kempner, Sugar Land, 77498. Imperialfarmersmarket.com Tomball Farmer’s Market. 9am-1pm. 205 W. Main St. on the corner of Main Street (FM 2920) and Walnut Street in downtown Tomball, 77377. tomballfarmersmarket.org Conroe Saturday AM Farmers Market. 9am-1pm. 135 N Main, Conroe, 77301 facebook.com/ConroeSamM/
SUNDAY
East End Street Market. 10am-2pm. 2800 Navigation Blvd, 77003. Eastendhouston.com/market Magnolia Farmer’s & Artisan’s Market. 11am-3pm. 1st , 3rd & 5th Sundays. Intersection of FM 1488 and FM 1774 in Magnolia, 77354. sweetmagnoliapickins.net Farmers Market at Bridgeland. 12:30-3:30pm. 2nd Sunday. 16902 Bridgeland Landing, Cypress 77433. farmersmarketatbridgeland.org
WEDNESDAY
Central City Co-Op. 9am-6pm. Kindred Church, 2515 Waugh Dr., 77006. centralcityco-op.com City Hall Farmer’s Market. 11am-1:30pm. City Hall. 901 Bagby Street, 77002 urbanharvest.org
THURSDAY
Westchase District Farmer’s Market. 3-6pm. 10503 Westheimer (at Rogerdale), 77042. (1 block west of Beltway 8) westchasedistrictfarmersmarket.com Kingwood Farmer’s Market. 3-7pm. Town Center Park, 8 N. Main St., Kingwood, 77339. facebook.com/kingwoodfarmersmarket
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Houston
www.NaturalAwakenings-Houston.com
We live in Houston, a seemingly concrete jungle, but there is more nature here than meets the eye. Houston has 52,912 acres of total park space, with 23.6 acres per 1,000 residents, which is almost double (yes, double!) the national average. Houston Wilderness (www.houstonwilderness.org) oversees our 10 different ecoregions which they are working hard to preserve. Our city government has a specialized Office of Sustainability (www.greenhoustontx. gov), which has information on their Green Building Resource Center, their Bikeways program, and much more. And several organizations have come together to encourage Houstonians to get outside with a new program and website, Get Out Here Houston Gulf Coast (www. getoutherehouston.org), which is a portal for nature organizations, outdoors events, and more. Its partners include the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center (www.houstonarboretum.org), Mercer Botanic Gardens (www.hcp4.net/ community/parks/mercer), and Nature Discovery Center (www.naturediscoverycenter.org), among others. “Earth Day” is Saturday, April 22 and there are a variety of activities being planned in the greater Houston area. Citizens Environmental Coalition (www. cechouston.org) is the sponsor of Earth Day Houston (www.earthdayhouston. org) – CEC is also a terrific resource for natural Houston. “Commune with nature.” Is one of my 12 ways to ignite your life daily – ways that, if followed, will stave off depression, anxiety, loneliness, and isolation. Being ignited for your life does that! Sarah Gish is the founder of IGNITE YOUR LIFE. Igniteyourlive.com and the publisher of GISH PICKS: Culture for Kids and Adults. Gishpicks.com. See ad on page 18.