“Oh I would be greener but I just don’t have the time!” Is a phrase you may have heard, well I am one of the busiest people I know (another phrase for you, “if you want something doing ask a busy person,” yes I am that person) and I still manage to fit in all my green habits. That is the thing, being greener is about making small changes to your usual routines so they become second nature or good green habits. My life is full of green habits that I have done for a long time and do without thinking about. However there are some areas in my life that don’t work when I am rushing around from one thing to the next, I think I am a serial doer. I am sure we have all been there rushing round to get out of the house to take children to school and then to town to get jobs done, then realising when you are in town that you have left a bill that needs to be paid on the side in the kitchen.
I want to get better at meal planning and start baking again but I need to slow down, to find the time to do this. Also sometimes when we are rushing around getting stuff done, we don’t stop or slow down to appreciate the amazing natural beauty that is around us, whether in our garden or in the countryside we travel through. In the summer last year I was doing a blog post about Brigit Strawbridge and her passion for bees and decided I needed a picture of a bee for my blog. So I went out in the garden to find some bees, bees are not very easy to take pictures of but I had an interesting and enjoyable half hour in my garden watching bees and trying to take pictures of them. Only when we slow down and re-connect with nature, do we realise how wonderful and beautiful the natural world is and we as human beings are part of it. Yes you can watch amazing natural history programmes on TV but nothing beats getting out in the fresh air and experiencing nature first hand.
Would you like to slow down and smell the flowers from time to time?
Here is a video of a robin I was watching in the wilderness I call my garden, it is a bit wobbly but I have been told that is because I had zoomed in to film the robin. I hope you don’t mind. To inspire you to get out into nature to see what you can see.
What a lovely blog, and the video was really good too. You’re so right about slowing down…. how on earth can we get everything done in the day, there’s something wrong if we don’t have a chance to stop for a while.
Hi Hilary. Thank you. Wasn’t sure about putting the robin video on. I am so not good at slowing down. Maybe by the end of the year I will be better.
Through the blog challenge I have found some lovely blogs and one of my favourites is Sarah Maliphant’s Recharge, Refocus, Relax and this post, Balance Enjoy the Moments links with my post about slowing down.
Thanks for such a lovely post with a fantastic reminder for us all. I included this in the Britmums green round up this week http://www.britmumsblog.com/2012/02/britmums-green-round-up-from-stockpiling-to-buying-nothing/
It’s definitely something *I* need to focus on; I live in a beautiful part of the world, the sort of place people pay to go on holiday to, so there really is no excuse not to go out for a walk every day. Thanks for the inspiration!
Sorry for not approving this before, but I have been neglecting this blog. Must do better. Thank you for sharing this post on Brit Mums. I love your monthly green round up.