Commonplace Posts

Upon seeing a quote in my apartment complex's office saying, "Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished" by Lao Tzu, I reflected on how true that is. Nature has a calm way of progressing, for the most part: crops, riverbeds, and especially century-old trees. They are all a positive representation of the most beautiful things taking the most time to grow.

My favorite book (and corresponding movie) is October Sky : The extraordinary story of four boys from a coal-mining town in West Virginia, who discover their fascination of rocketry following their witnessing of Sputnik soaring overhead, winning first place at a national science fair and making their way into the world when nearly everyone doubted them at first. A great nature quote from the book is: "I was proud to live in Coalwood. According to the West Virginia history books, no one had ever lived in the valleys and hills of McDowell County before we came to dig out the coal." (Hickam, Jr. pg.5). Homer Hickam, Jr. allows the reader to visualize an empty Coalwood before it became Coalwood; vast valleys and hills covered in dead brown grass in the winter months, only for its black base to be later used for resources.

There is a quote from Memory of Water  that specifically caught my eye as I was reading it: "Bright as a reflection in a clear mirror, I saw myself, walking and learning the scent and twists of the unfamiliar streets between the buildings of a strange city like one learns a language. And beyond that, a landscape of my own, for me to discover and make my home." I particularly like how the author, Emmi Itäranta, refers to the act of becoming familiar with a new city being much like that of learning a whole new language. Also, the term 'landscape' is used here to describe a place to be made home, for someone to call their own. A place where one and the earth could coexist.

In the book Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH , a quote about an area known as Thorn Valley wonderfully portrays the beauty of it: "It was beautiful and still, a wild and lonely place. Through the green and yellow treetops below us I could see the water of the ponds sparkling in the sun." While a bit stereotypical, the description still takes the reader there to this tranquil spot. With the use of colorful adjectives and playful visuals, the reader can enjoy this scene.

It is no secret that, according to my blog bio, my favorite nature element is water. Be it water bodies, waterfalls, or the trickling of a babbling brook, I can't get enough. Therefore, I made this week's post relative to water. The quote, "No water, no life. No blue, no green" by Sylvia Earle puts water's importance to earth's functionality into perspective. Water is not only a peaceful means of relaxation, it is much more than that: a vital piece to our existence.

This week, while reading an article a friend of mine wrote for her garden club, I took special notice to a quote by Henry David Thoreau that she put inside: "Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads." I feel as though this quote would grab the attention of just about anyone due to its such strong statement of Heaving being all around us. Thoreau was, of course, one of the most influential nature writers to ever exist, so his take on natural beauty here is rather accurate. The perception, I feel, remains up to the reader, though. For instance, one might believe Thoreau is referring to the natural beauty of plant formation while someone else might infer it as how wonderful life itself is to them.